Black Knight
by PlaguedAmbition
Summary: Naruto was the son of the Hokage, he was an execeptional shinobi nothing should be holding him back from making a name for himself. So why was it that he was removed from his family and forced to live on the outskirts of the village, hidden away from prying eyes. Older Brother Naruto.
1. Chapter 1

**PA: With SiT reaching its final stages and Shadow Dwellers now finished, I decided to start work on a new story. In it Naruto is two years older then Anko and Kurenai who will both be early twenties when cannon starts. **

* * *

His black hair flickered in the wind as he watched the people below celebrate. A festival was being held, on this day, October the tenth. The date of his little sisters birthday and more importantly the day he lost his father. Minato stood proud from the top of the Hokage tower as he addressed the people, causing the raven-haired man to snort, there was a time when he saw that man as his father.

But that time passed, after all what father in their right mind would seal a demon into his own children. Without noticing Naruto's hand slowly made its way up to the corner of his eye tracing the seal that was woven around it.

Naruto saw a redhead slowly make its way up to stand next to the Hokage, he had to fight the urge to snarl at her. No matter what he did, no matter how nicely he went about that bitch would not let him get to know his own little sister, the one that had to share the other half of his curse.

He wished he had his mother, he had seen photos of her loving face and knew if she was still alive all of this could have worked out. They could've been a happy family, but alas he was exiled more or less and his little sister was seen as Konoha's Princess.

He slowly closed his eyes hiding their golden colour from the world before turning on his feet and heading back to his home, having had enough of the festivities for one night. His cloak flapping in the wind as he bounded across the rooftops, his feet barely making a sound as they touched the tiles he used to push back into the air.

His little sister Natsumi, she would be starting the academy this year, no doubt her trip will be easier than his.

The raven haired teen found it funny, he was the bastard son of their greatest kage while his sister who sadly was related to his whore of a stepmother were seen as royalty. He hailed from two great clans for crying out loud.

His black sandals made no noise as he landed softly on the grass below him, he looked around quickly making sure he wasn't followed. It wouldn't matter much if he was as the animals wouldn't let anyone but him and a selected few near his house. But it was better to be safe than sorry.

When the coast was clear he pulled his traveling cloak around him tighter and stepped forward as the tigers came out to greet him before sulking back into the shadows. He was seen as the King of training ground 44, the animals knew this, even the shinobi knew this.

Appointments were ran past him for those who wanted to enter as he was known to kill any that stepped inside the forest giving it its name. 'The Forest of Death.' With a small flick of his wrist he opened the front door and trudged himself inside hearing it close behind him.

With a stretch of his arms his cloak was removed and hung on the hanger being the door as he continued through to the kitchen in his shinobi garb. He wore black Anbu pants and a skin-tight black T-shirt that came down to his wrists. He wore no flak jacket because as far as the villagers was concerned he was just a monster that didn't deserve a rank. He made his way into the kitchen and started the kettle intent on having a cup of coffee to help wake himself up and bring some heat back into his body.

Winter was just around the corner he could feel as much. He did not understand how people figured out how to mark the changing of season but he left it be knowing it must have been someone smarter than he... or a mad man.

He pulled out his mug and filled it with two teaspoons of the brown flaky gold he called coffee, before dusting a light layer of pixy dust over the top (sugar). The kettle gave its resounding click letting him know its task was done, with a flick of his wrist a thread of chakra was sent from his finger trip deftly hooking around the kettle and dragging it to where he was with his mug filling it with the steaming water.

A few drops spilt onto his bench, the way he handled it was lazy and he could have done it properly without making a mess but this also helped his chakra control, he needed very fine control for that jutsu and even doing just that little trick helped him to learn how to wield it better.

The sun was setting outside as he grabbed a washcloth from the sink quickly wiping up the mess he had made. It bathed his home in a natural orange light making it feel more alive... he hated that feeling. It was painted a deep blue for a reason so as to remain cold like he was taught to be. It was to remind him that there was no room for weakness in his life no matter how appealing it may become, and finally it was to ward people off, he did not like weak willed visitors. If they were going to bother him the better have a bloody good reason.

His coffee was quickly finished off afterwards leaving a bitter taste in his mouth as he moved through his house and headed to his dojo noticing the change in flooring as it became Tatami. The soft feeling beneath his feet as he carefully moved onto his knees and gave a small bow putting his forehead to the floor. As he sat back up straight still kneeling on the floor he closed his eyes and felt his power slowly wrap around him.

The reason he was banished. The material he already knew used his chakra as a barrier of some kind to redirect the damage that would be done to him, such as if a kunai was to strike his side instead of slicing him like it normally would it would become a blunt force spread across the side hit to reduce the damage he took.

He let it wrap around his ponytail and finish covering his body before slowly raising to his feet. His suit of armour, his curse and blessing. It was streamline and silent, it did not get in his way nor was it too visible it could blend nicely into the sounding areas in a moments notice making him invisible to the naked eye. He felt a weight appear on his back and knew his bow was back in its place.

He had spent so long working on this obsidian beauty that it was littered with seals that would make even Jiraiya cringe at their complexity. It was perfectly silent, it quickly applied a seal to the arrow when he notched it masking all sound the arrow would make and masking any sound that would come from what it hits.

It was his perfect long ranged weapon able to kill in the dead quiet of night without giving away his position. Next was his Katana that rested lightly running down his spine, its case was a very dark grey while the blade itself was a purple that was heavily tinted making it much darker than normal so as it did not stand out too much. Packs of Kunai rested on his thighs they refilled by the suit draining his chakra to forge the metal allowing him to use them like they were going out of fashion if he needed too. He pulled his blade from its case and felt the small spark of lightning that ran down it because of his bloodlines.

This suit framed his body and made him feel stronger than he ever could when he posed as a human. There was a faint knock at his door showing how impressive his hearing was to hear it from over 50 metres away. through closed doors and walls. He let the suit fall from his body into ash on the ground, he stared fondly at it for but a moment before making his way to the front door opening it to see a group of Anbu there, he sent a small glare there way and nodded letting them know he wanted them to talk.

"Kurama-san your 'friend' is at it again. Toshiko's this time." He hated Minato at times, not only did the man take his name from him but he also forced him to allow this group of Anbu onto his property for reasons such as these.

"I will leave in a moment, begone before I make you leave." He huffed closing the door in their faces. he placed his cloak back over his shoulders and did the clasp at the front sighing when he heard it click into place. He let his body shift away into smoke as the air carried him to where he needed to go.

* * *

Anko's night out had slowly started to go down hill, it all started out like normal, her and Kurenai went out to go have a few drinks, sadly it would seem that two drunk 16 year olds is too much for the perverted Konoha to just sit and watch as the men started to become increasingly touchy towards them. Thus lead to the predicament she was in now with her back to Kurenai as they were surrounded on all sides by lusting chunin and jounin alike, things were not boding well for the two.

"I still find it interesting how often you can get yourself into trouble Anko-san." Her eyes went wide as she heard his calm voice break across the ruckus that was being made by the drunken men. Some of them even dared to turn and saw the golden eyed man looking rather bored with the entire situation he was now placed in. "You are all too noisy for my liking, please leave now I am sure that no one wants to deal with you, also remember to pay Toshiko for any damage you caused to his bar or I will hunt you down for him." He tilted his head to the side when no one started to move.

He rubbed some gunk away from his eyes and flicked it to the ground in disgust. "If you wish to fight me so bad, please meet me out on the street, do not stare like some common fangirl, it is unbecoming of shinobi." Kurenai was looking between Anko and the strange man.

"Who is that?" She whispered so hopefully only her purple haired friend would hear, sadly she did not know about Naruto's acute hearing.

"I am her handler so to speak, they call me when she gets in trouble so things do not escalate from this level." Kurenai looked back to her friend to see her sheepishly nodded in agreement while scratching the back of her head, a small red hue covering her cheeks showing the sake they had been dining on had its effect on her still maturing body. There was some grunting from the males as some of them called him out on what he said and moved outside taunting him.

A glint passed through his eyes causing Anko to shiver where she stood. Even if she was only two years his junior it felt like there were light years between them in skill. And that glint in his eyes had always promised pain since the moment he had become her handler. He motioned for the two girls to follow and Anko quickly took Kurenai's hand not wanting to be on his bad side with how he was now, not again. "Trust me it is better to just listen to him now, just listen and watching." Kurenai nodded her head dumbly as she saw the group crowd around the raven-haired man with eyes like a snake.

He centered himself in the crowd and lowered his stance to almost a crouch, one arrogant chunin came in and attempted to sweep his bag leg, this attempted ended in Naruto putting a foot in his face and kicking him down into the dirt below them watching as the man twitched for a few seconds before passing out. Seeing that no one else was as keen to get things going he moved into a more relaxed stance looking like he was ready to fence against someone, his right hand slightly forward at throat height while his left sat at his sternum, both in a position to defend or attack if needed, his feet were relaxed and felt light meaning they could move at a moments notice.

"I beg you to not waste my time." A small group a jounin rushed him, he hoped that their speed had been reduced by the amount of alcohol they had consumed tonight or he seriously feared for Konoha's safety. One was taken out quick enough with a strong backfist to the face knocking him down flat. Naruto spun quickly on the spot catching the second ones arm giving it a sharp twist before the bone broke free from its prison of skin. He gave a side backfist to the person that seemed much to interested in his arm for the mans own good. He saw the final man approaching him and just sighed giving a small kick to the man's gut which made him double over before hooking his leg around the mans neck and flipping them both in the air in order to build his momentum for the toss at the end of his move, which caused him to kick up a bit of dirt as the final man slid across the ground.

"Y-you're a m-m-mon no you're a demon through and through, why you are even allowed in this village is beyond me." The speaker had gotten rid of his fear halfway through his talk, either that or he seemed to remember he was a shinobi that should not show something quite so obvious as that to his opponent.

Naruto tilted his head to the side and blinked his eyes at the man. "Your point being, I am here to do what must be done. You fools are disturbing the peace begone." He waved his hand and expected the group to leave, he turned on his feet to address Anko when a bottle was smashed over the back of his head, he felt the small amount of blood flow out of the wound and drip down his back. "I shall give you to the count of 10 to leave before I kill you for being such an incredibly dimwitted imbecile." Naruto did not even need to start counting as the once arrogantly smirking man looked ready to soil himself as he ran.

"They call me a demon then expect me to go down after being hit with a bottle, such idiots." He mused more to himself then the girls that were left, Kurenai's jaw threatening to unhinge from the angle it was held on while Anko pumped her fist up in the air.

"Kurama 32 to the villagers 0, looks like you are still ahead Kurama-san." She tried to say politely at the end knowing he could very well still be in his 'mood'. He turned to her and gave her a small smile.

"Anko-san, aren't you meant to tell me when you plan on 'having a night out' so you say in your own words by order of the council and Hokage?" Naruto mused, he noticed Kurenai taking in his appearance and found it odd, he almost enjoyed her red eyes dancing over his body... almost.

"I uh um forgot?" Naruto gave her a small 'tsk' and shook his head showing he disapproved.

"I know it is still rather early but I think that is enough of a night out don't you agree Anko-san and?" He motioned to Kurenai for her name, said teen jumped in her shoes when he pointed towards her, she too pointed at herself causing him to nod. "Yes you, what is your name friend of Anko-san?"

"K-Kurenai." She stuttered out under his golden gaze, he shifted the thought around in his head for a few moments, Crimson, just like her eyes, it fit in a strange way.

"I guess the polite thing would be to escort you two home." Anko nodded happily, it seemed he was not in such a grumpy mood anymore, that was always good seeing as he could be very violent when he was. The group had quickly reached Kurenai's apartment as she bid them farewell, she looked at Naruto for a few seconds longer then what is expected causing him to tilt his head in confusion. He felt a small nudge in his ribcage and looked to see Anko poking him with her elbow.

"She totally has a crush on you Kurama-s, nah I am just going to call you Kurama." Naruto studied her for a few more seconds before laughing internally.

"Than I shall call you Gaki. Now come on Gaki lets get you to home." He taunted, only stopping when he saw her downcast expression. "What happened Anko?" He dropped all kinds of formality mostly because he knew she wasn't a big fan of it, neither was he but it showed that he was still human and not some rampaging monster.

"I-i g-got kicked out of my apartment today, I was going to try to seduce a boy into taking me home and letting me spend the night so I could fix it in the morning." Naruto internally snorted at the idea, it was stupid.

"You can sleep on my couch tonight, tomorrow I can help you find a new house. But just for future references trying to seduce a boy normally means you wish to sleep with him not in his house." She blushed heavily at the thought having not planned that far ahead, only just noticing that he had said she could stay the night.

"Really Kurama? You would do that?" He gave a small shrug of his shoulders.

"It makes my job easier seeing as I know where you are." He gave her a small smile as she gave her apologies. Later that night he was called to the Hokage's office. The black-haired teen who seemed to look much like Madara had in his glory days looked across at the man who would have been his father, that is if things had of stayed how they were.

The first thing he noticed was that there were no Anbu in the room, his black hair no longer held in its ponytail flowed down his back and framed his face making his golden animalistic eyes ever more piercing. "You called Hokage-sama?" His voice was cold showing he was not happy to be here, he had complied like normal and showed, even if he felt a small amount of hatred he could not explain towards the man.

Minato stood from behind his desk and passed a file over to Naruto, the black-haired teen reading through it quickly raising his brows at the end. "It is a four year job... One I can't trust to anyone else." Naruto snorted and put the file calmly on the Kage's desk.

"Are you not worried that I will betray you? I am only your bastaard demonic offspring that holds no love for anything. People are not sure wether I will attack them or not for just walking down the same path." Minato grimaced at how calm and collected he could sound about the event.

He had listened to Kushina and because of that he had created a monster. "You are loyal to the village, not its villagers. That is why I can trust you with this position. You can not be bribed as you have no need for money. You are tougher to crack then Ibiki and scarier on the battle field then the man you resemble." Naruto inwardly smirked at the praise from his father while he stayed calm on the outside his face impassive.

"You do not need to tell me what I am good at. I trained to be that way after all. I will agree under two conditions." He started, Minato motioned for him to explain. "I will not be some pawn for the council to play with, I will only take orders from yourself, in person." Minato could see the logic behind that, Naruto's chakra was too violent for a normal genjutsu to work against, the illiosun would just be rubbed away like it was sand. "Secondly When I become a jounin the council will _not _force a team on me, I will take one if I choose too." Minato nodded the terms were reasonable enough.

"Sounds like we have a deal. Oni." Minato held his hand out to shake Naruto's when he saw the suit that would become feared spread over the boys body and cover every inch of who he really was.

His voice now sounding distorted and demonic came though the strange fox like Oni like helmet. "My blade serves Konoha." He gave a small bow and vanished into the night sky already taking off home, tomorrow he would set up for his new job.

* * *

Kurenai sat on her bed in her small one person aparment, thinking to herself as she clutched her legs closer to her body. She wasn't ready for bed yet so she was using this method to stay warm as it seemed to be to much effort at the moment to turn the heater on. She had made chunin earlier in the week. Tonight was meant to be their night to celebrate but she could see the logic behind Kurama's words. She wondered weakly why Anko never told her about him, was he hiding something?

She let out a small groan and floped down into her bed deciding she may as well try to get some sleep. His voice was charming and he was sounded by this aura that she found atractive. "Gah." She exclaimed flipping over and putting her face into the pillow. She was too old to be having a school girl crush. Her brow furrowed thinking about it.

He looked like someone she should know. Someone important, she remembered his fight, he was a little cokcy, but he had a very good reason as she saw how quickly he dispatched jounin. It made her wonder what chance she would have against him, more then liking it would be slim or non exsisten even.

It made her wonder why someone like that was tasked with watching over Anko. That was her last thought as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

She awoke early in the morning quickly finishing her rutine before walking outside to head to the local Dango and coffee shop knowing it was where she met Anko every morning. She saw the black-haired teen walking alongside her again and she inwardly frowned thinking that maybe Anko claimed him last night she was further convinced when Anko parted away from him and bid him thanks for letting her stay the night. Turning away from Naruto she saw the look on Kurenai's face and gave a small childish giggle. "We didn't do anything Kurenai... jeeze what do you take me for."

The raven-haired girl dead panned but decided not to bother answering the question. "Whatever, its not like I cared anyway." She crossed her arm over her chest and gave a small huff.

"You so do~" Anko chimmed as she walked into the store to order their breakfast.

Naruto arrived in his new office with his suit already in place. ( Ok the best way to describe this thing is to picture Madara's perfect Susano being worn as a Suit of skin-tight armour. A very deep blue-black main colouring with a slight crimson tint to the trim... hope that helps.) He calmly walked further into his office and saw a note on the desk asking him to show up in the council room at 9, looking at the clock on his desk he saw he had only 15 minutes and just decided to walk over seeing as he didn't exactly have enough time to do anything else.

He could hear the noisy debate that was happening inside and figured that they wouldn't hear him even if he knocked so using his prefered method of travel (turning into smoke.) He filtered into the room through the keyhole and reformed standing directly behind the Hokage freaking out many of the seat holders in the room when they finally took notice.

One larger civilan member stood up in outrage, the thought of someone just breaking into the council rooms like the rules didn't apply to them. "Who do you think you are? Barging in here and covering your face from us! I demand you tell us your name" Naruto tilted his head to the side before looking at Minato, he didn't bother to answer the loud man, he already told Minato that he would not be ordered by them.

Minato gave a single clap of his hands to gather everyone's attention solely onto him and Naruto. "The person behind me is a solution to the amount of corruption I have seen from this council. This is our new Anbu Commander... Oni." Naruto gave a small bow of his head and was glad his face was hidden or the Uzumaki clan head would see a very heated glare sent her way. "He will only take orders from myself, thus he holds no loyalty to the council only the Hokage." A few of the civilians gasped at what he said while the ninja side nodded in agreement having had enough of these greedy free loaders bribing their way to the top.

Naruto stepped forward slightly and stood next to Minato looking across the room at all that were present. "If I find your actions to be a threat to this village... I will kill you. This is your warning." He looked to Minato who gave him a nod telling him two things, that he agreed with how he handled that and that he could leave for now.

Naruto once again turning into his wisp of smoke and leaving through the vents like he was never there to begin with.

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**PA: Chapter 1 of a new story I will be working on, if anything confused you let me know so I can try to make to make sense... Until next time.**


	2. Chapter 2

**PA: Wow that is all I have to say to the response of the first chapter, I put a lot of thought into this kind of Naruto and was thinking it could go either way but so far you all seem to be enjoying it and I thank you for your awesome reviews.**

**Now I will have to apologise firstly for being from Australia meaning the spelling for some words may be different from what you are used to. Secondly for being a very poor student when I was in highschool. I kind of thought english class was a joke and that I couldn't see myself ever sitting down and writing about something... oh how ironic seeing as I have come to love posting on fanfiction.**

** .5: Naruto will become closer to his sister but it wont start to happen for a few chapters. So yeah you are right to hope about that :D**

**awesomeconji1: Naruto's eye colour will be explained when his relationship with Kurenai develops a bit more.**

**Disclaimer: I get real tired of having to admit every chapter that I do not own Naruto... its kind of depressing don't ya think?**

* * *

Oni stood in the middle of the Hokage office, still covered by the suit to hide his identity. "Remove your mask." Not for much longer though as he reached up and pulled the mask away the form hugging Suit vanishing leaving him in crimson red armour, his unkempt black locks falling down his back and going to the top of his legs. His messy hair falling down past his chin across the front the left side of his face covered while the right side was framed by the locks. (Madara's hair except mirrored.) His visible eye a vibrant red with three tome. The Anbu in the room gasped and shakily drew their blades. "Madara!" They dashed forward in an attempt to 'protect' their Hokage.

Naruto with little effort parried all the strikes that were thrown at him from the Anbu, even going as far as to not draw a blade of his own. "Stand down Anbu." The blonde haired Kage roared from across his desk. His hands had stayed intertwined the throughout the entire event, while Naruto looked forward an apathetic gaze on his face. "You really do look like your grandfather though. I can see which side you got your looks from."

That hurt, it hurt so much that he had to find out on that night rather than from the mouth of his own father. He had forcibly grown somewhat closer to Minato, when you are the leader of his private army and only take orders from him face to face it is quite hard not to. A locket hung loosely around Naruto's neck. U.I. was engraved into the silver piece of jewelry. "People will ask questions." Minato grimaced at his son's hardened voice. He could not blame him though the missions Naruto had completed were something inhuman and would really test your sanity.

"You can turn your sharingan off now Naruto." Naruto gave a small nod and his eyes turned back to their normal gold but now held a black fuma shuriken pattern in the iris. Minato had read the report from his son, his eyes had changed when he unlocked his sharingan mutating even their natural look.

"Looking through my natural eyes feel like a foreign concept now." He cracked his neck to the side and let out a small groan. "Now that my four years are up, I guess I will be demoted to Jounin." Naruto stated, it was what they agreed on so why would it have changed?

"Not exactly. You have been given Sannin traveling rights. This means you can travel through any nation we are neutral with showing only your Ninja ID. I honestly think you would be able to do that without the rights mostly because you look like a clone of Madara." Naruto snorted at what his father was saying. "I will be making an announcement in a few moments across the village. Anbu if you would?" They all gave a bow and left the room.

"Are we going to return to our estranged relationship father?" His eyes gave away no hint of emotion as he continued to just look out of the windows behind the blonde-haired Kage.

"Kushina will be angry." Naruto felt like slapping the man in front of him, after all this time he was still so whipped. "But she will have to learn to deal with it. The past four years we connected again. You made me remember what it was like to have a son... thank you Naruto." He gave a small smirk to his father.

"She will try to take action against me using the council... we both know this." Minato smiled widely in his seat.

"She will not. I will be putting my foot down when the meeting is called shortly after the announcement." Minato motioned for Naruto to follow him as they moved through the tower, people going flat against the walls as the pair walked. "I do not know who's path they are moving out of, yours or mine." The blonde joked causing Naruto to crack a smile of sorts as they reached the roof the sunlight shining down on them.

Naruto looked across to where he stood four years ago seeing a new member of Anbu in the very same position. He saw the figure flinch at Naruto's appearance and reach for his blade that was situated on his back, this all happened as Minato's hand slowly moved down to rest on his son's shoulder putting the Anbu at ease.

"People of Konoha." The crowd looked up and the duo on the roof heard screaming. "I need you all to calm down." Minato tried relax the crowd but his effort seemed wasted.

**"Listen to your Kage Maggots." **The Anbu that had not been in the room now knew who exactly was standing next to the Hokage, their old commander. Naruto's voice froze the people on the ground in their place.

"Well that was quite effective. This man beside me is not Uchiha Madara, this is his grandson and my son Uchiha Naruto." Minato had offered him to take the Namikaze name, Naruto politely turned him down saying that it would cause more trouble than it was worth. "He is with me today so you do not give him the reaction he received when you first took notice of him everywhere he goes in the village. That is all." Minato turned on his feet and moved away from the edge only taking a few steps before he started laughing. "The looks on their faces. It was priceless."

Naruto frowned he also knew where he got his personality from. "I think I will take my leave now father." Minato nodded as he held his sides in from the pain. Naruto shook his head, sometimes he couldn't believe he was this mans son. He vanished in soundless black flames appearing outside of his house. It had been so long since he had been here, hopefully Anko had taken care of it.

A large tiger stalked out from the bush to his right moving into sniffing range before letting Naruto pace peacefully. "Strange how Animals are smarter than humans at times." He figured Anko would either be out or asleep so he just entered the house walking through the corridor and coming into the living room where he was greeted with the sight of a topless Anko shifting back and forth. He could hear male groaning only making the matter worse.

"Really Anko... on my couch?" The purplete slowly turned her head at those words and saw a face she hadn't in some time.

"Wow, four years really does change a person." She pulled herself off the man Kami he was so happy to see she was in jeans that were still done up. it wasn't as bad as he had thought.

"What did I say about one night stands?" Naruto growled out as he moved closer to the couch, Anko jumped in front of him and waved her hands defensively.

"If you came home every now and again you might actually know that we have been dating for a few months... where have you been anyway?" Naruto just shook his head at the girl not knowing whether he could actually believe her or not, he would just take her word for it this time though.

"Now that the job is over I can legally tell you, I was the Anbu commander." Anko looked like a fish out of water as he finished his sentence, Naruto looked over the back of the couch and saw a scared chunin laying flat and shivering where he was. When he looked up to see the crimson eyes and what he believed to be a dead man he promptly passed out. "That was actually kind of fun." He looked over to Anko for a few moments. "So you and Iruka eh?"

She nodded hesitantly answering his question. "Well good for you two. I hope everything works out." She nodded once again but her eyes slowly steeled.

"Mr we are going out drinking tonight." Naruto rose a brow in question to the small girl giving him orders. It was strange to receive them from anyone but his father. He slowly nodded and Anko motioned towards the locket around his neck. "Who is U.I?"

* * *

**Flashback **

Oni was crouched down on top of a tilted roof, beside him was Weasel and Anbu he had taken under his wing... so to speak anyway. "Are you sure you are up for this?" He heard Weasel take in a deep breath before giving a nod. "You work your way in I will work out to you." He saw Weasel snap his head up about to protest. "I will leave Sasuke alive. I am not heartless despite the rumors that go around." Itachi nodded shakily and removed his mask.

"They are our clan, the deserve to see the face's of the men that killed them so they know who to curse in the afterlife." Naruto nodded and forced the mask away from his face with his chakra showing his crimson eye to the world. "I will see you soon. Good Luck Oni-sama." Itachi vanished in a flock of crows while Naruto stealthily moved to the centre of the compound only a few moments passing since he started. He dropped in through the window of Itachi's room that was left open prior to him leaving tonight. This house posed the biggest risk as it had an alert button to all those that were ready to rebel.

He moved to the master bedroom and slipped in without a decibel being made, he was perfectly silent as he sat on the headboard above Fugaku his katana held in reverse grip resting a millimeter away from the man's forehead. A single slip and he would wake him. He was tired and already bored with thinking of the many different ways he could kill this traitor. With a single swift movement he raised the blade an inch away before slamming it straight through the man's skull, he pushed to far and heard the fabric of the pillow underneath his head tear.

This caused the woman next to him to stir. She slowly woke and was ready to panic when she saw a sword sticking out of her husbands head. Looking above her she saw him crouched down with a finger over his lips. She felt a Kunai tap against her throat and gulped. "I knew your mother." She whispered out with a frown on her face. He removed the finger from his lips and tapped the kunai again letting her know to continue.

"Uchiha Izanami, the daughter of Uchiha Madara. Your grandfather... did you not wonder where you got your looks from?" The woman smiled a warm and kind smile at him. It confused him deeply he was here to kill her yet she was not afraid. "She was as beautiful as her name suggested and as kind as they come. Plus she was your fathers first choice. That has to count for something right?" He did take pride in that. Kushina was only able to get her claws into Minato because his mother had passed away. "I know why you are here tonight. I know what must be done, in my draw there is a note that was meant to be for Itachi, I saw you some years ago and suspected that you may have been her son... looks like I was right."

She was making this very difficult for him being so cheery, telling him everything he wanted to know. "I just want you to know, we deserve what you and Itachi are doing. We have wronged you almost as much as we did the village." Naruto narrowed his eyes Mikoto as she continued to talk. " The clan elders poisoned your mother so she wouldn't live through childbirth... it was their punishment for failing pregnant with a non-Uchiha out-of-wedlock... she was to die if she went through with the pregnancy." A drop of liquid fall onto Mikoto's cheek it fell from above her, she looked up into Naruto's teary eyes. "Your mother said she couldn't kill you not even if her life depended on it. I saw her hold you for the first time with the tears running down her face as her heart rate dropped pleaded for just a few more seconds as you wrapped your tiny hands around her finger."

Naruto was now not the only with tears on his face as a few had started to slip from the Uchiha beneath him. "Minato had to leave the room as he couldn't handle watching her die. He took the entire blame on himself and tried to keep you as happy as he could only it wasn't to last... well you know how the rest of the story goes Naruto." He nodded his head in agreeance.

"I am sorry... and thank you Mikoto." She bowed her head watching as the Kunai came closer to her skin he saw the panic in her eyes. "Itachi already asked, Sasuke is to be kept alive." She nodded and slowly closed her eyes waiting for her death. He made it as quick and painless as possible. She shared a bed with a monster as far as he was concerned she had suffered enough in her life.

He cleaned his Kunai and removed his sword from Fugaku's head flicking the blood on the ground as he moved to the draws that Mikoto had mentioned finding a note just like she had said.

_'Itachi,_

_I understand what you have to do and know that is must be difficult but please can you grant me two last requests. Look after Sasuke but don't coddle him ok? He doesn't want to be babied anymore he wants to be more like you, strong and brave. Please find the man named Kurama/Naruto, give him this key and tell him about my deposit box at Konoha's First Bank. I thank you for cleaning up the mess your father made my son, I do not regret having you for even a moment as I think of what is to come as this is as much my fault as anyones._

_Your loving mother Mikoto.' _

Naruto noticed the key and picked it up folding the note cleanly and storing them both inside his Suit for protection. He steeled his nerves he hoped there was not another house like this.

Itachi left the village that night, it housed too many memories for him to remain. Naruto understood what he was talking about and let him go with a head start before reporting him missing as he held the deposit box which was left for him. Opening it he found a handful of sealed scrolls and a few ninjutsu ones. But out of everything a silver locket lay in the middle it stood out and felt like it was calling to him. He gently picked it up and opened it seeing a photo of his mother and father standing beside each other happily resting their hands on a small bump on Izanami's stomach. He let a lone tear fall at finally having a family picture, he undid the clasp and placed it around his neck gently doing it up again as he packed up the contents of the box into a sealing scroll and put the box back where it belonged. "Thank you again Mikoto."

**Flashback end.**

* * *

Anko saw the small tear that fell down his face and wondered if she said something wrong. He gently cleared his throat and opened the locket showing it to Anko who gasped. "Uchiha Izanami... my mother." Anko looked up at him and for the first time in her life she could honestly say he was happy. She moved forward to hug him but was met with a hand stopping her. "Put some clothes on first."

Anko let out a small 'eep' noticing that her top half was infact still bare. With her bra and tight shirt now covering her she moved forward and hugged Naruto. "Not as good now that the moment is gone." She mumbled into his chest causing him to laugh.

"At least we are both fully clothed now." She nodded and he smiled.

"It was strange without you around you know... its good that you're back." She shone a bright smile up at him. Yeah they didn't talk too much before he had vanished but when she thought about it, every time things were about to get really ugly in her life he had popped up and made them better for a few moments.

"It's good to be back... gaki." He smirked as he rested his chin on top of her head and felt her smack her fists into his chest playfully. "Want to wake up your boyfriend and we will go for a drink? I could use a few bottles." He chuckled sheepishly and she leant back and laughed at his sheepish look.

* * *

Toshiko's, Naruto was honestly not surprised she had dragged him there. "You really weren't joking, crowds do part as you move." Anko said in awe and she hung onto Iruka's arm, said chunin was feeling incredibly out-of-place where he was.

It did not take him long at all to make it to the bar eyes watched him with extra caution as he sat down wearing a pair of jeans and a nice long-sleeved T-shirt with said sleeves rolled up to his elbows, the silver locket in place around his neck.

"Anko I got your message..." Naruto knew that voice so he turned around to greet them, sadly he was so used to having his sharingan on that he had completely forgotten about turning it on to scare Iruka earlier. The figure jumped forward and pushed Anko and Iruka away from him and held them behind her. "How are you even alive Madara?" Naruto tilted his head to the side was, he had thought she was the smart one.

"Hey uh 'Madara' turn your sharingan off." Anko made sure to put air quotations around his grandfather's name. Naruto did just that his golden eyes coming back into play. He saw Kurenai's jaw slowly lower till it got to the point where it was impossible to fall any further.

"Ka-ka-ka." She stuttered causing him to smile towards her.

"Call me Naruto. Uchiha Naruto." He gave a small bow that moved his hair just enough to see the outline of the seal around his left eye. He raised his head to see Kurenai nodding in shock. "Well how about the first round is on me anyway?" Questions were thrown at Naruto left and right about what he had been up to. He answered as best as he was allowed to be law.

"Anko tells me you were the Anbu commander... is that true?" Naruto nodded and rolled up his left sleeve showing the Anbu tattoo with a shuriken behind it all flowing seamlessly together. Iruka let out a whistle as he looked at it. "Well now I have something to tell my students. Not every day you get to see that now is it?"

Naruto just shrugged his shoulders. "It isn't everyday that one retires and is allowed to talk about it." The rules of Anbu were clear you were not allowed to talk about Anbu until you were out of Anbu. A small blush was adorning Kurenai's face, the fact that the small crush she had on him four years ago never went away did not help the fact that he was incredibly good-looking, she could see the definition in his biceps. Not to mention when Anko lifted up his shirt and told Iruka to get ripped like Naruto. It was really not helping at all... ok maybe it did make her feel just a little better.

"Anko is still pretty intense isn't she?" His voice it sounded so calm and full of life, different to what she would expect from an ex-Anbu, she looked around and met his gold eye with her crimson. His haired moved slightly as he sat next to her allowing her to see the full seal around his left eye it looked like tribal markings around his eye, she thought it was just another tattoo.

"Why do you hide the tattoo around your eye?" He flinched a little when she asked.

"Because it isn't a tattoo." His voice had turned hard from that little question, Kurenai looked down a little, it must be a sensitive subject.

"I'm sorry." Her head snapped up, she had just been going to say those words when he beat her to them. "You didn't know. I shouldn't have acted the way I did." A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Kurenai swayed lightly in her seat the amount of alcohol in her system having finally taken effect, she drunkenly leaned in towards Naruto, said raven-haired man turned when he felt her hot breath against the side of his neck.

"Hey Naruto, Hokage-sama wants to see you." Kurenai snapped her head around so fast that her hair almost managed to whip Naruto in the face.

"Thank you Asuma-san, I shall take my leave." He said goodbye to the group and passed a large pile of money to Anko. "I don't know if I will be coming back tonight. So have fun, my shout." He gave her a small smirk and her eyes widened at the amount he gave her and nodded with passion. She looked over to Kurenai and mouthed the girl a quick 'sorry' as Naruto walked out of the door.

"What do you want Asuma?" The crimson eyed woman bit, clearly showing she was not pleased with what he had caused to happen... really he couldn't have waited like 5 minutes?

"I just wanted to say that I was stupid and I want you back." Kurenai sucked the bottom of her lip and shook her head from side to side trying to stop herself from laughing.

"You're fucking joking right?" When he didn't make any changes to what he said she continued. "You try to force yourself onto me for my first time, then come back to me when I am about to do some **I **want to?" She continued to shake her head at the man.

"Asuma-san I believe you should leave." The voice come from behind the bar and a very pissed off bartender was looking the bearded jounin in the eyes.

"Yeah yeah, I get it. He already has you under his control." He waved offhandedly as he walked away only to be slapped down to the ground by Anko.

"Take that back you sexist pig."

* * *

Naruto stood in front of his father's desk, he was wearing the same clothes he had been at the bar. Minato smiled at seeing the locket around his son's neck still. "Now I will keep this quick, I was wondering if you wanted to be a judge at the jounin exams, they are coming up in four months."

Naruto gave a small shrug of his shoulders. "I don't see any issue with it, would you like for me to make Anbu recommendations as well?" Minato tapped the end of his nose and pointed at his son.

"I know you would catch on." Naruto smirked at his father.

"Hokage-sama a fight has broken out at Toshiko's." Naruto sighed and Minato turned to look at him.

"I was just there." The blonde nodded in understanding. "I will take care of it father, no need to send any Anbu I shall make it quick." Minato nodded and Naruto was consumed by black flames appearing at the front of Toshiko's just in time by the looks of things catching two fists that were about to hit the person standing either side of him. He turned his head to each side and saw Anko and Asuma. His crimson eyes seeing the scared look behind her eyes, he knew how to read people and knew who was at fault. It made it even easier when the man would not make eye contact with him.

"If the Hokage was infact not looking for me I may have suspected that you sent me there to cause trouble Asuma-san." He tried to blurt out that Anko started it. "Be that as it may Asuma-san, our night was quite delightful until you showed up, now will you leave quietly or shall I take you to the Anbu cells?"

The bearded jounin snorted. "Of course you would have the Anbu under your thumb." Naruto shook his head in pity at the man.

"Yes, they will listen to me. But no I am not controlling them, it is out of respect." Asuma broke free from Naruto's grip and went to take a swing again, the raven-haired Uchiha gently guided Anko away as he blocked Asuma's strike. "Attacking me while I was trying to defuse the situation, have you no honor Asuma?" When he got no answer from the man he took a step back and rested his left hand on his hip, turning his sharingan off. "I will gladly fight you if that is what you wish, for someone to blow your own ego?"

The smoker jounin raised his fists up to his chest taking on a slightly more relaxed boxing guard. "You're going to need those eyes to keep up. I was a guardian ya know?" Asuma said as he dashed forward, Naruto's hand shot through the man's guard and crushed his windpipe to the level where he wouldn't die before sending a quick backfist to the side of the mans skull causing him to fly off to the side stumping as he gasped for air before falling over.

"And I was the Anbu commander. I don't see your point." Asuma's eyes went wide just before he passed out. "That is a lesson to all of you, do not become overconfident in your abilities. It will lead to your downfall." He turned on his feet and headed over to Anko who was cheering, Iruka was shaking his head at his girlfriend's antics and Kurenai was looking at Naruto strangely.

"So what did your old man want?" Kurenai's head shot back and forth between Anko and Naruto. "What you didn't know?" Kurenai quickly shook her head.

"Father asked me if I would judge the upcoming jounin exams." He saw Anko and Kurenai stiffen. "Well looks like this will be more interesting than I thought." He felt a pair of delicate arms wrap around his chest and looked down to see Kurenai leaning against him.

"T-thank you. I know I should have defended myself but he outranks and out classes me, I guess I just didn't have the backbone." Naruto rested a hand on her head.

"Its alright, he seemed like a dick. It's all ok now though right?" He asked jokingly she nodded her head and he looked up at the stars in the sky. Kurenai figured now was as good a chance as any and started leaning up to kiss him, only stopping herself this time, she was nervous and had sobered up a little since before. "Hey you ok Kurenai?" She nodded weakly into his chest ashamed at not being able to just do what she wanted.

"Y-yeah I am just tired." What a stupid lie.

"Oh, how about I walk you home then?" She quickly agreed to the suggestion and walked alongside him out of the bar leaving Asuma where he fell only to be picked up by a shadow moments later.

"He is so heavy Naruto-sama." The figured groaned out to itself before jumping away to the infirmary.

"We definitely need to get those two together." A certain purplete cheered while the man next to her agreed.

* * *

"Fail." Naruto called out as he sat in the middle of a clearing in the forest of death. He heard some grumpy mumbling from the one standing behind him as a clone rested a kunai against her throat.

"How am I even meant to do this?" He felt like chuckling but found that may be kind of insulting.

"Would you believe me if I told you... the water walking exercise?" There was no sound from the person behind him causing a smirk to spread across his face. "Are you ready to try again Anko?" He heard her footsteps grow softer before disappearing altogether. With his eyes still closed he extended his senses trying to hear her foot falls. With his eyes still closed his right arm snapped up and his fingers grasped her wrist. "There is too much emotion behind your strike. I know this exam means a lot to you Anko but believe me, you need to be able to detach yourself from emotion while on higher tier missions."

He slowly opened his eyes and gave her a soft smile causing her to blush. "Stop doing that baka."

"That is exactly what I was talking about gaki." He chimed in waving a finger on his still free hand back and forth like he was scolding a child. "Your infiltration skills are almost jounin level. The rest is still sitting at high chunin." She frowned as he spoke. "But we still have over three months to bring those up to speed. I will help train you for the exam." Her eyes brightened while his darkened. 'She is going to hate me when all this is done.' He inwardly mused.

He was not wrong, two weeks had passed in the blink of an eye for the pair, Anko lay panting on the ground while Naruto looked like he had just walked out of the house to start the day. "You are improving in leaps and bounds Anko. When was the last time you had someone instruct you?" His question seemed innocent enough... to him at least.

"It would have been, before I left with Orochimaru?" She said between pants and Naruto nodded his head.

"To raise from genin to this level of skill, all on your own no less it quite impressive in the amount of time that was allotted. I believe if someone had of taken the time to train you when you were younger, you could have been hailed a prodigy." ANko looked up to meet his golden smiling eyes, she was one of the few people who could say she was able to picture Madara smiling. "I believe we are done for the day."

Anko went to pick herself up but found she was pushed to the floor and a hand shot down hovering over her chest. She was about to scream pervert until she saw the green glow around his hand. "When did you learn how to heal?"

Naruto looked up at her for such a silly question. "I was Anbu for nearly 14 years... 4 of those spent as the commander... all Anbu have basic medic training." That was the first time she had heard how long he had really been in Anbu. It had made no sense when he had told her he was the leader as she had never known him to have been in Anbu.

Things started to fall in place and she looked at him in shock. "...Oni?" She questioned weakly to which he nodded. Oni had been the only male Anbu to look out for her when she had been younger. "Wow, you have looked after my ass for how many years now?" Naruto mauled the thought over in his head.

"Close to ten I would say."

"In a way that makes you like a brother yeah?" Naruto could not see the logic behind that but shrugged nonetheless. "From now on you shall be Onii-chan."

His face turned to a deadpan expression. "That was so lame gaki, are you even trying anymore?" Anko gave a huff from where she was sitting as he finished healing her minor injuries. "You should be fine to keep training in about half an hour if that is what you want to do."

She nodded and gave her thanks before walking away leaving Naruto sitting in the clearing. A large white tiger came and sat in front of him causing him to raise his brow. "What are you up to buddy?" The large cat gave a big yawn and tilted its head to the side looking at the black haired man. "Well I am a little hungry, want to come grab something to eat?" The large cat stood and moved to stand beside Naruto his back coming past the mans hip. Naruto was not some small man either he stood at a decent height of 6'2. This was just one large cat.

* * *

Anko and Kurenai were panting as they stood across from one another, the crimson eyed genjutsu user was impressed at how much Anko had improved. "Finally putting some effort behind your training?" She questioned causing the purplete to frown.

"Always did, I finally have someone to teach me now though." Kurenai wasted no time in questioning who. "Naruto of course." The way she said it made it sound like Kurenai had asked a stupid question.

"Does he know genjutsu?" She questioned Anko thought about it for a moment before shrugging not actually being able to remember him ever using it.

"I do." A voice calmly stated from next to her ear causing her body to shiver as Naruto's body was slowly revealed... along with an incredibly large tiger. Naruto saw Anko looking at his new friend in question. "Meet uhhh Tai-long?" It looked like the cat shrugged at the name. "Ok from now on you can be Tai-long."

Anko nodded dumbly while the tiger moved over to Kurenai and forced her to pat him. "Well you seem quite friendly Tai." Kurenai turned her head to look at Naruto with question evident in her eyes. "Would you be able to help me train for the exams as well?"

Naruto gave a small shrug from where he stood. "I will help out when I am free, which seems to be quite a bit at the moment." He chuckled at the end while rubbing the back of his head. "Anyway I should leave you two to it, me and Tai were just on our way back home after lunch."

Anko looked at the tiger then back at Naruto. "You just walked him into the village and no one questioned you?"

Naruto looked at the girl like she was an idiot for a few moments. "Gaki, not only do I look like a carbon copy of my grandfather, I am the Hokage's eldest. People kind of just turn a blind eye when I do things like that plus he is friendly enough, if he did get spooked and try to attack someone I just cast a genjutsu over him, can't have the villagers getting hurt when they don't deserve it." Kurenai nodded and looked to Naruto.

"Are you free at the moment?" He gave her a small nod. "Do you think we could... you know?" Anko looked at Kurenai, it was clear her friend was not well versed with how to talk to men.

"I can help you out if thats what you are asking?" She nodded with a slight hue on her face. "Can you perform a genjutsu?" She nodded and brought her hands up in front of her body to channel chakra holding the ram seal with them both, the area surrounding him turning into the Uchiha district causing him to frown before quickly swiping his hand and dispelling the illusion. He sent a small glare across at Kurenai.

She hung her head down in shame. "I shouldn't have used that illusion... I'm sorry." Demonic scenery, has the ability to make the captive see and area that brings them fear. Naruto knew that genjutsu well enough.

The scene around them all changed while Naruto had not moved a muscle or so it seemed. The clearing was covered in a dark mist blocking out all their vision. "Did you see what I did?" He questioned letting the illusion fall from around them. Both gave a small shake of their heads. "A simple trick that can be used to catch your opponents off guard. Kurenai try to cast the illusion again but with one hand this time."

The illusion took much longer to cast this time and he saw a small sheen of sweat form on her forehead glistening in the afternoon sun. With a swipe of his hand he dispelled it again letting the district fade away into the air. "Now hold a genjutsu over the hand channeling the chakra." He motioned to his left hand that was down by his side hanging like one would if they were standing lazily. She felt his illusion creep into place his hand never moving a muscle.

Again he quickly dispelled the genjutsu and looked at Kurenai. "The art of illusions is about tricking your opponent, if you mix this in with an evasive style of combat, you could trick your opponent into thinking you are a bunshin." The raven-haired woman let her eyes widen at the prospect having never thought of something like that.

"Meaning while they are distracted looking for the real you, you could strike from right in front of them?" Naruto nodded at her question and watched as she applied the henge on her hand and tried again. She was struggling to cast the illusion while maintaining the genjutsu over her hand while at the same time trying to cast Demonic Scenery onto Naruto.

It took some time and Kurenai had started to pant, the genjutsu around her hand was shaky but she had managed to cast the intended one onto Naruto. "It will take some time, but once you get the hang of that we can move onto holding a chain of genjutsu while casting a multiple layered one." Kurenai started to go pale and started to sway where she stood, Naruto closed the distance and put her down on the ground gently. "You should have just told me you were running low. We could have taken a break ya know?"

There was a small amount of worry in his voice, something Kurenai found both thrilling and heart wrenching. "I didn't want to waste your time." He looked at her for a few moments before laughing softly.

"Don't worry about me Kurenai, worry about yourself first. Genjutsu while not the most physically strenuous, it does put the most strain on your mind out of the three types. If you start feeling tired or uneasy you should be careful about what you attempt.

That was genjutsu 101, she felt slightly angry that he was reciting things to her that she had already been told, when she looked at him it wasn't like he was trying to lecture her, it was more like he was trying to protect her. She leaned her head onto his shoulder, he passed it off as her being exhausted, he reached in behind his loose shirt and pulled out a scroll scribbling quickly along it, filling it with lines upon lines of information causing her eyes to widen. He finished and tied the ribbon around the outside into a nice bow before dropping it into her lap.

"Inside of it are a list of tips and tricks I have found that help me with genjutsu, I don't know if they will do the same for you, but it can't hurt." She inhaled deeply through her nose taking in his scent, it was strange but she knew it just where from. Strangely she was drawn to thoughts of the flowers in her apartment. Belladonna, thats what it was. Such a strange yet appealing scent.

The plant berries have a somewhat sweet taste to them but are incredibly toxic. When she thought about Naruto it seemed fitting, a sweet man who was incredibly deadly. A sigh escaped her lips as she continued to lean against him. "Earth to Kurenai?" He chimed out trying to get her attention.

"Huh?" She stumbled out focusing on his face as it was incredibly close to hers at the moment causing her to blush.

"I asked if you were feeling ok?" She looked into his bright golden eyes feeling them bore into her. She rested a hand on his chest causing her blush to intensify.

"I am feeling a little light-headed, is it ok if we just sit here for a little?"She asked looking completely innocent of trying anything.

"Yeah that sounds cool." He replied giving her a friendly smile.

"Maybe she isn't as clueless as I thought?" Anko mumbled to herself from nearby Tai-long laying on the ground next to her, the tiger stretched out and gave a big yawn. "Well if you insist Tai, I am sure we can go get some Dango." The tiger looked at her for a few moments before doing an action that looked like shaking its head and following after the purplete making sure to keep her out of trouble.

* * *

**Anbu Years**

(As the title suggest this will be a little section at the end of the chapters for some time showing snippets of what Naruto got up to during his Anbu years. I hope you enjoy.)

A groan slipped from the young boys mouth. Having been accepted into the Anbu at the age of 8, he was definitely the youngest recruit. He was currently wearing a tracksuit while his face was covered by a plain white mask. A katana tanto sitting in the middle of his back as he slowly pulled himself up from the ground and faced down at the Oni masked Anbu before him.

He raised his hand up to the tanto and clenched it tightly feeling the 'spark of life' as he called it resounding within the blade and his body melding them together to work as a perfect instrument. He clashed his tanto against the karma the Oni held in reverse grip. The older male quickly knocking Naruto off to the side only for it to fade away as it hit the ground.

"A genjutsu, but I wonder what part of it was, our clash or you vanishing. Was I fighting the real you or a clone?" The man mused bringing his karma behind him and blocking the tanto strike from Naruto. "You hold to much emotion in your movements, I could feel your KI giving away your position gaki." 'Naruto' smirked right before he blew up in the Anbu's face sending him back a few feet with a crack running down his mask.

The man quickly waved a hand over the crack and Naruto saw the mask repair itself. "The Oni shall not show its face until it makes its final move." He tilted his head to the side and Naruto felt a strange sensation just below his ribs. He moved his hand to the area.

"Damp." He muttered him himself bringing his hand up he wiped it across his once porcelain white mask, leaving four long red lines running across it. He put his hand back to where the wound was and found the kunai removing it and tossing it to the ground as his hand glowed red for a moment slamming it into the wound. Oni had to watch as the boy burnt the gaping hole closed.

With the wound now closed Naruto painfully strode forward attempting to strike the man, Oni side-stepped the first strike causing Naruto to smirk beneath his mask as he swiped out with his blood covered hand spraying the liquid over the mans eye holes, the black-haired child pivoted on his feet and brought the tanto back around stopping it just as it nicked the man's skin feeling a kunai pressed up against his throat. "You are a real demon my boy, welcome to Anbu."

Oni removed the Kunai from Naruto's throat and the boy dropped to his knees still holding his own blade in place, panting heavily before letting it fall to the ground beside him. He felt his mask being moved from his face but he was simply to exhausted to do anything about it, moments later another was placed on his face. "From this moment on you shall be Oni." Naruto strained his body to nod at what the man said before everything faded to black.

* * *

**PA: Here is the first section of flashbacks. Do not worry I will not being going to the cannon line and having flashbacks for things that happened like two paragraphs ago, they will mostly be for explaining things that happened off screen or before we joined the Naruto in this fic. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to reading your reviews.**


	3. Chapter 3

**PA: Hey all, now a fair few of you are asking about Kushina's history with Naruto... this chapter springs a leak in the dam. (That is a saying right?) **

**lemons will be added... at a later point... Naruto has a lot of issues he needs to work though, yeah that is pretty obvious. So while it seemed to start of fast, I would put them as friends more than in a relationship at the moment.**

* * *

Naruto groaned as he flopped down onto his bed. He was beyond exhausted, having just finished reporting in to the Hokage after finishing his latest mission. He stretched out as he yawned, his hands traced along something frilly?

His crimson eyes snapping open and looking at what he had felt, a black frilly thong was laying on his bed next to a pair of jeans, a bra and a tight top. 'These aren't mine?' He looked at the garments with an aura of confusion surrounding him.

He doubted that they were Anko's, she knew his room was off-limits. During this time he hadn't noticed that the shower was running, that was until it stopped. The soft pitter patter of water hitting the ground as someone stepped onto the tiles in his en suite. He heard the door slowly open and turned to see who it was.

His crimson eyes burning what he saw into his mind as she stood there frozen, a towel currently covering her eyes. Naruto showing just how much he knew what to do in this situation, looked dumbly at her. "What are you doing in my room?"

Her body froze, her hands still in the towel wrapped around her hair cover her eyes. "N-naruto?" It was very quiet in the room. Kurenai could not think of anything more awkward right now, it seems as if Kami was testing her though.

"Hey Kurenai are you, oh hi Naruto, I didn't know you would be home so soon." Naruto turned his eyes to Anko who stood in the door frame connecting his room to the rest of the house.

"You didn't get my message then?" From the corner of his eyes he saw Kurenai tighten her grip on the towel. Anko shook her head. "Ah I guess it was an accident then, well I will leave you to get changed."

He pushed himself from the bed and took a slow step forward, stopping right next to Anko's ear, leaning in and whispering into her ear. "You shouldn't lie Gaki... its unbecoming." Anko stiffened as he walked past closing the door behind him. The small gust of wind that was created from the action causing the towel covering Kurenai's body to fall from her frame.

Slowly removing the towel from her head, you could see that her cheeks had become the same colour as her eyes, said eyes were wide and filled with horror. "Well at least he wasn't in the room when that happened." Anko pointed to the glistening naked body of Kurenai, who nodded dumbly.

"S-so I h-have been s-s-sleeping in his bed for the past week correct?" Anko nodded her head thoughtfully, hiding the smile that wanted to burst free. "And my apartment is still being repaired... correct?" Once again Anko nodded. "So what am I to do?"

Anko took her thinking position, it was not needed though, she had already thought of this from the moment she read Naruto's letter, saying he would be home today. A smirk started spreading across her face, slowly walking towards the door and poking her head out seeing Naruto pawing at Tai-long who wanted to be left alone. "Hey Naruto?"

The man and tiger tilted their head to the side comically. "Yes?"

"I was wondering if Kurenai could stay tonight, her apartment is undergoing repairs after a small fire." Anko had an innocent look on her face, while Naruto looked at her with confusion on his face.

"Of Course, you need not ask." Kurenai burst through the door causing Anko to gasp and Naruto to freeze.

"Are you sure I wouldn't be imposing?"

"Uh Kure-chan?"

"Y-yeah Anko?"

"You are kind of uh naked... in front of Naruto." An eep was heard and the raven-haired beauty vanished. "Well that was strange." Naruto nodded at Anko, his sharingan blazing, that creamy white skin would forever be burned into his memory. Naruto frowned as he looked at the girl he saw as a sister of some sort.

"You," He started before taking a deep breath. "You shouldn't get involved too much, I like you guys, but I don't think you can beat my curse." He frowned deeper and stroked Tai.

The tiger seemed to growl a little. "Stupid ningen." Naruto slowly moved his hand away from the tiger as it spoke. "I didn't say stop, I just called you stupid." Anko sweatdropped, a talking tiger was laying in their living room. "I agree with him to a point Anko-san, do _not_ push a Uchiha."

"So you weren't what you appeared to be." Naruto mused out loud at Tai.

"And you are?" The large Tiger bit back.

"Touché." Anko looked between the two as they started at one another, golden eyes bouncing off burning red.

"I must ask, why are you here Tai-long?" The tiger grumbled at the question before standing and stretching its back out.

"Funny you actually managed to guess my real name, nonetheless I am here under orders, seems even hidden away, you have caught the eyes of some interesting people. I am here because of their interest in you." Naruto brought a hand up and rested it against his seal, it was burning.

"Being hidden away from the world, it is something that is hard to explain, until you are in the position, isn't that right Naruto?" He shot the tiger a look that silenced him.

"Naruto?"

"I am fine Anko, Tai-long has just made a mistake, he assumed something that was not true." She nodded hesitantly, slowly leaving the room, once out of earshot, Naruto looked down at his hands. "The world is locked away from me... to protect them." So immersed in what he had said, he failed to notice the door to his bedroom slowly close.

* * *

Dinner was in one word, quiet. No one really knew what to say, what was there to say anyway? Sorry? Ooops?

Naruto was putting the final piece of meat from his plate into his mouth, when a knock sounded at his door. He excused himself and went to answer, his father rounded by four Anbu walked in. "Naruto, I have something to tell you." Naruto nodded hesitantly. "After your last medical report, you are relieved of duty until further notice. I am sorry but it is for your health."

The black-haired man nodded dumbly as he looked at his hands. "Are you not going to say something?" Naruto just shook his head.

"What is there to say father?" Minato grimaced and apologised again as he left, causing Naruto to wave it off. "It is how it was meant to be." Little did he know that those parting words would haunt his father for years to come.

"Naruto, are you ok?" Anko's quiet voice broke the silence that had come to pass since Minato's departure.

With a sad smile Naruto turned to her, his sharingan turned off and his patterned golden eyes boring across the table. "As I said, it is how it was meant to be. I shall be fine...gaki." Anko groaned while Naruto left the room coming back with a blanket and pillow and putting himself on the couch. "Please do not be up to much longer, I still have some things to do tomorrow."

He sounded so defeated, Kurenai felt her heart quake at his words. Tai-long put himself to bed a few feet away from Naruto, his head down and eyes closed, as he listened to the world around him. "Naruto, you don't have to move out of your bed for me." She tried to reason.

"Kurenai there are many things I am not, chivalrous is not one of those."

"T-then s-share it with m-me." She stuttered out causing Anko's eyes to go wide while Naruto looked confused.

"Is that ok?" Kurenai looked at Anko for a few moments who was actually too shocked to react before giving a shy nod to the man. "I shall see you when you come to bed then."

The way he said that made her heart flutter, sharing a bed with Naruto, thoughts flew through her mind so fast, that she could barely see them before she was assaulted by a new one. She saw him stand and leave the room wanting nothing more than to chase after him.

Anko now collected her thoughts and looked at the blushing Kurenai before winking, moving to the door as Iruka would be coming around soon, "Be careful with him yeah? I don't want you wearing him out on the first night."

Kurenai was now eligible to be called the scarlet princess. "You do know he can more than likely hear us right?" Anko shrugged her shoulders.

"He already knows how I am Kurenai, he accepted me before even you. You are the one that has something to prove." There was a knocking at the door and Anko turned on her feet opening it for Iruka, embracing him in a hug. _'Something to prove.' _ Kurenai thought.

"Anko, thank you." The purplette looked back at the raven beauty and gave a smirk.

"Anything for you two."

* * *

Kurenai shuffled into the bedroom, Naruto was still up, his sharingan eyes blazing as he read over a scroll. Taking a peek she saw it was focused around sealing, not exactly her area, but even she could tell he was looking across high level things, making small notes as he went along.

A small book was brought out quickly, a strange symbol printed on its front, Naruto flicked through the pages like a mad man, trying to find what he was looking for. Finally finding it he exclaimed and put the book up near the scroll. "Kinshi sare ta toshi." (Forbidden City) he mumbled out drawing a quick pattern on a spare piece of paper.

Naruto smirked and Kurenai felt herself become warm, even though it wasn't directed at her, his expressions seemed to change the atmosphere of the room. "Can we talk for a bit before we sleep? I want to know you a little better." He rose a brow and slowly turned to her his eyes flicking back to their golden form for a moment. He rolled up the scroll and packed away his book.

He frowned and laid down, facing the ceiling as Kurenai stripped out of her jeans and jumped into bed. "What do you want to know?" She paused, hadn't thinking she would get this far.

She needed something, anything right now, "What's with your eyes?" Wanting to slap herself she let out a large sigh. "You don't have to answer that." She saw a small shrug from the black haired man.

"My golden eyes, well , I got them when I obtained my stage 3 lightning affinity." She gasped as he remained quiet. Getting to stage 2 in an affinity was easy enough, stage three, well... you had best be prepared to enjoy a stay in the hospital, at best. "My instructor put me out in the field during a thunderstorm, explained what was going to happen, then left. I was alone, completely, no orders, no rules, just knowing what was to come. It was a new experience, something that shook me completely." He took a deep breath watching as Kurenai listened intently to his every word.

"I became a lightning rod, for five minutes I became my own person, lightning flowing through my veins, I felt reborn, the experience ended too quickly for my liking, my instructor surprised that I lived slapped this seal around my eye. Father said my eyes used to be so full of hope, after that moment I became a savage, living on a chain, being unleashed in a direction the village didn't want to see again." He paused pulling his hair up to show the seal around his eye, Kurenai took careful notice, it looked like the one he had just been studying.

"What does it do?" He stiffened for a moment. Looking at her with his red eyes.

"Long story short, it's a leash." He frowned and rolled over turning the lights out. It was clear he no longer wanted to talk, respecting his wishes she rested her hands on her stomach, the ever tempting smell of belladonna reaching her nose.

Things finally started to click for her, noticing that she was in fact, in the same bed as her crush, inside his room, within cuddling range. She attempted to move forward but a growl from the foot of the bed froze her. "Sorry I thought I saw something that I shouldn't." Tai-long held firm in his belief... do _not _push a Uchiha.

* * *

**Flashback **

Naruto stood in the middle of the kitchen, his hands behind his back as his flak jacket stood out proud. His father was proud, at the age of six his son was chunin, it was something unheard of. His golden eyes shone as he looked at the person standing in front of him, she was physically beautiful, physically.

He was sent down to the ground, his cheek stung, an emotionless mask in place he stood back up, standing just as he did before. "This proves it, you really do take after your mother." As much as he wanted to, Naruto could not strike out. Naruto was brought to his knees in pain, trying his best to steal his emotions. "My seal won't be broken, remember this, I will not let you bring any harm to my daughter.

A small bump was on the redhead's stomach, she rubbed it tenderly. "I will keep you away from her." Naruto frowned causing the woman to smile, finally breaking through his mask.

"You are not my real mother, you will always be fathers second choice." His words struck her cold, his footsteps echoing as he moved to the door only to collapse in pain.

"I am NO ONES second choice, your father loved me first, your whore of a _mother _used her sharingan on him." fighting through the pain, Naruto slowly stood his golden eyes slowly turning to their red with three tome in each._  
_

He channeled the chakra needed to his eyes for the genjutsu only for his seal to activate again. "Funny really, you care so much about your sister that you can't harm me." She snorted. Let me fix that. Intensifying the pain that racked his body she brought out a sealing kit, a few brush strokes later she moved away. "Everything you love, of non Uzumaki decent, shall die by your hand. This is my curse to you _Uchiha._" She spat his clan name out, like it was mud.

"Its funny, you, the Red Death, is scared of a child. How the mighty have fallen. If my mother could see you now, I bet she would be laughing, you taking what was hers only after she died. Pathetic, just like a Uzumaki, you hide behind paper and ink claiming to be better, the reality is, everyone knows your clan is scared to fight. Scared to get their hands dirty doing _real _shinobi work. You are like your clan, pathetic and scared." He breathed out as his seal pushed him lower to the ground, making him almost bow to her.

"I thought Uchiha were meant to be smart? Why do you keep fighting even though you have lost." Naruto slowly smirked.

"You don't even know your own husband, is he just some meal ticket to you? Father never gives up, no matter how bad things may look, he _always _finds a way... always." He repeated, a foot came down on his head pushing it roughly against the ground.

"Then why is your mother still dead?"  
(Hate me if you want, this is the first real encounter of the two. More will be explained in further flashbacks.)

* * *

**Present**

Naruto harshly awoke, he hated that dream, his hand instantly going to his seal, that was the day he lost his normal vision, without the sharingan... he would be almost blind. The feedback from the genjutsu crashing against the muscles in his eyes, it was simply to much, he burnt them out, now he could see outlines of people and their chakra levels, that was it. His sharingan became sharper, it seemed the chakra feedback had evolved them somehow, they required almost none to be kept on.

It came as both a blessing and a curse, chose a life of darkness, or a life you can never forget. Everything he saw with his sharingan was burnt into his mind, this was the reason why he could not look at the beauty in his bed. Everytime he did, he could see her creamy white skin, subtle droplets running down her legs while her hair framed her beautiful face.

Threads of chakra flew around the room as Naruto scribbled in a note, it took him less than fifteen minutes to get ready, including his shower and morning coffee.

His grandfathers armour on he strode out of his home, Tai-long following his trail. His golden eyes taking in the sketchy scenery around him, small traces of chakra hanging in the air, residue, such a waste. "What are we doing today Naruto?"

The raven-haired man thought about it for a few moments, what could he do? He froze in his step. "Something I should have done so long ago." Tai tilted his head to the side, following Naruto nonetheless.

Anko woke not to much longer after Naruto did, walking quietly through the house she made it to his room, gently opening his door so as to not disturb them. "You really are scared of letting her in." He was gone, not surprising really, she felt sorry for Kurenai, her friend really had picked the hardest person to get close too. "You know, Naruto hates people using his things, maybe you do have a chance." Anko turned on her feet and walked out the door, closing it behind her.

"Thank you Anko." She immersed herself deeper into his sheets taking in his scent, She heard the crumbling of paper, groggily opening her eyes and looking at the note.

_' Kurenai,  
_ _I am sorry, last night... I guess what I am trying to say is, I find it hard, dealing with and seeing people as humans, normally they are a target, easy to kill, easy to forget about. When emotions come into play, it changes the field to some landscape I do not understand. Anko once told me, 'Just about everything can be settled over sake.' I guess that was me trying to ask if you wanted to get a drink later?_

_Naruto'_

"You don't have to be sorry." She mumbled looking at the note, a strange symbol in the top corner.

* * *

Naruto's feet paused, two years, it seemed like only yesterday. Tai-long stood next to him, not daring to move forward, Naruto would need his time. "Itachi, did we do the right thing?" The streets were cold and lifeless, his red eyes taking every detail in, he caused this. He would not forget.

The small pitter patter of children's feet used to be heard, now there was only a breeze, flicking his hair around in the wind. "Tai-long?" A small 'hmm' was heard from the tiger. "Is it evil to kill a corrupt clan for a corrupt village? Am I evil for following orders?"

Sitting on his hind legs Tai-long put a paw up against Naruto, causing the man to look down. "A evil man will not question what he does, that does not mean you are a good man, but you are not evil. In the larger picture there is no difference between the two. For example, a young girl steals medicine from a story... is she good or bad?"

Instantly Naruto replied. "It is a crime, thus she should be punished." The tiger shrugged its shoulders and lead Naruto slightly further into the compound.

"But what if I was to tell you, it was to save her sick grandmother. What if I told you the store owner was corrupt, charging much more than should be possible." Naruto was about to answer, he paused mid step and looked at Tai-long.

"To commit crimes for someone else... is that what it means to care about someone else?"

Tai tilted his head from side to side, "Yes and no, but that is not what I was getting at."

"What you were getting at I cannot answer, I do not feel strongly enough to be able to do something like that." The large white cat nodded his head.

"At least you are honest, well even if you aren't, you think you are." Naruto looked at him for a moment. "You were given orders, 'Kill all Uchiha.' Yet three of you live... why is that?" A fuma shuriken pattern quickly formed in his red eyes. "Defensive about that night are we?"

"I, it, uh I don't even know what to feel, call, or do about what happened. Should I mourn? Should I be happy that I finished the mission? Should I be disgusted for killing my kin?"

"I doubt you would enjoy me calling you Kin-Slayer." The primal growl from Naruto was enough of an answer for the tiger. "This is something you will have to deal with... don't you have a promise to keep?" Naruto rose a brow and turned to the tiger, he was gone.

"Am I going insane?"

"People say they can see the dead wandering here, I can not... what do you think about this area?" He turned on his feet and the small boy gasped.

"Do you want to grab something to eat?" The small raven-haired child eyed him suspiciously. "I have failed so far in my promise, I have come to make it up to you."

"Who are you?" Naruto smirked showing his red eyes to the child.

"My name is Uchiha Naruto, I knew your mother, s-she helped me a lot, I guess I just wanted to help her out in someway." Sasuke was transfixed on the man before him.

"I have heard of you, _Itachi_ spoke of you a few times, said you were like a beast, holding the world in its jaw, confused on whether to cherish it or destroy it." Naruto picked up on the way he spoke of Itachi, it seemed the boy had a strong hatred for him, that was something he would have to work on.

"I gave your brother a choice, I will give you the same." Sasuke looked like he was ready to turn him down right away, he bit down on his anger and nodded slowly to the man. "Would you like to learn from me? When we have free time of course?" Sasuke rose a brow.

"What can you do?" Naruto smirked.

* * *

Sasuke lay panting on the ground, looking up at the man before him, not a single spec of dirt lay on his red armour. "I have one condition."

Sasuke huffed and nodded, too tired to do anything else. "Use what I teach you, to protect, not for revenge." Anger flickered through Sasuke's eyes and Naruto pinned him down without any effort. "Look what that path did to your brother." _'Forgive me Itachi.' _Naruto lied to the boys face, his eyes widening.

"I will not become my brother." Naruto moved off of him, extending a hand out and helping the boy up from the ground.

"Good, meet me at the gates to training ground 44, tomorrow after class." The boy nodded and Naruto put an awkward hand on top of Sasuke's head. Both pivoted and left, not speaking another word, Naruto leaving feeling better than he had in a long time, while Sasuke had been left with a lot to think about.

* * *

Kurenai walked across the ground, not even the grass talked of her passing. Her kunai held in reverse grip, placing it against the back of his neck. "You failed." His voice sounded out shocking her, spinning on her feet she saw him sitting on a patch of grass she walked right by, no she moved around that patch of grass, she could see the mark's of her feet, they curved around where he sat.

"I felt like I was walking in a straight line." Naruto with his eyes closed smirked.

"Try again." Kurenai watched him closely, taking her steps slowly, trying her best to stay straight, she stopped in front of him. Turning around slowly and seeing the curved path. "Genjutsu, making someone believe what is not really there. I won't cast the second part of it, try again." Kurenai nodded and moved back to where she had stood earlier. "You haven't eaten yet right?"

"Why would that matter?" Naruto had still to open his eyes, he looked to be meditating, she knew he was doing something, just what was it?

"You will see in a moment." She went to take a step but fell to her knees, the world was spinning.

"Hmmm, smells like pancakes." Kurenai looked up and tried to glare, quickly putting her head down, she felt sick. "When you can beat this technique, or figure out how it works. I will help you design a new genjutsu." She looked at him in shock, completely forgetting about what happened last time.

"Can y-you turn it off?"

"It is, your body will just take time to readjust." Naruto wondered if she would pull anything from that hint. He moved to help Kurenai, stretching his arm out to comfort her. A burning sensation dug in around his left eye.

He slowly retracted his arm. "Kushina." He snarled causing Kurenai to look up at him.

"Naruto?" The worry in her voice, it pained him.

"Sorry, it was nothing, I shall wait for you to recover." He sat down in the grass closing his eyes. _'Everything you love, shall die by your hand.' _

Naruto looked to be off in his own world, Kurenai reached forward slowly, his hand quickly shot up and clutched tight around her wrist, his eyes suddenly went wide and he let go. "Sorry."

"You say sorry too much." He looked up and met her ruby-red eyes, unable to draw himself away, thankfully he didn't have to, she hadn't fully recovered yet.

* * *

**Flashback **

Itachi was on the ground, a pool of his own vomit around him. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve, looking up and meeting the gaze of his veteran partner. "That is what I was feeling?" Naruto nodded to the boy. "I think I have it." Naruto looked down at the boy, curious. "Its the power of suggestion. I know its weakness, even if I am wrong about what it does." Naruto rose a brow. "You can't move while using it." A small smirk formed across his face.

"I don't have to." Itachi looked down, the vomit around him was gone, before him sat Naruto with a kunai resting against his throat. "I can make you come to me, without you even noticing." Naruto smiled, it was a normal enough smile, but it shook Itachi to the core, he was nothing before this man, why was he called a prodigy? He gulped nervously as the kunai was still in place, not moving a millimeter. " Did you enjoy 'Kami's Voice'?" Itachi froze in place as more and more Naruto's started appearing around him each holding an Itachi at knife point. "Answer me this Itachi, if you think you are here... where are you really?"

The boy looked around, it was scary, not knowing if he was in fact him, or what Naruto just wanted him to think was him. "This genjutsu is confusing." The teen stated causing Naruto to chuckle as he pulled the Kunai away.

**Flashback End.**

* * *

"Uchiha-sama." Naruto groaned, it seemed that Asuma was more than happy to spread around the word that he was the previous Anbu commander, he nodded as the Anbu looked at him from a kneeling position. Kurenai was able to stand, barely, but she was able to stand.

"What would you ask of me?" He groaned out, his eyes widened a tinge, he knew this Anbu, how could he forget that purple hair.

"Hokage-sama needs you right away." Naruto stood and looked over to Kurenai.

"Neko, can you please watch over Kurenai until she is ok? I showed her Kami's Voice." Neko flinched but nodded quickly.

"You didn't give her the same test you did us right?" Naruto smirked and vanished in black flames.

"What did he do to you guys?" The purpled haired Anbu laughed nervously.

"It ended with us all pointing swords at one another thinking it was him. He was happily sitting upside down on the roof, watching." That was a tale in chakra control and capacity. Having a room full of Anbu at his whim, what a scary thought.

Naruto appeared in his father's office, instantly he wanted to go back home. "Uzumaki-san, Hokage-sama." He bowed politely.

"You called _him._" Kushina spat, causing Minato to frown.

"Give me the name of someone more qualified, I will happily go get them myself." She looked between Minato and Naruto, yes he knew he would definitely be sleeping on the couch for some time.

"There is only one reason you would have me called here with Natsumi present." Minato nodded confirming his suspicion. "Are you sure you want to do this, better question, have you asked Natsumi if she wants to do this?" A blonde girl slowly walked out from behind Kushina, Naruto crouched down to her level showing her his golden eyes.

"Will this keep the demon away?" Naruto flinched at her wording and looked over to Kushina who was smirking.

"I can not make him go away, but I can show him that you are the boss." He cracked a small smile, her chakra was so bright and happy, looking at himself, he was a raging hurricane of emotions.

"I accept then, do what you must." Naruto nodded.

"Keep that up and he won't have a chance." She shone a bright smile at this friendly stranger. "Father I am ready, rest your hand on my back, you are coming with me." Minato nodded and formed the ram seal placing his free hand on his son's back as he sat down, Natsumi picked up on what he said.

"Father?" Naruto looked at her strangely for a moment.

"It does not matter at the moment. Please sit down." The girl quickly responded and sat crossing her legs and resting her hands in her lap. "Now look into my eyes, this will sting a little." She nodded as Naruto put his right hand on her forehead, his eyes flashing red, three worlds going black.

* * *

Naruto knew this place all too well, he was the first to recover and helped the other two up. Both panting heavily, Naruto turned to face the small blonde. "Welcome to your mind."

She looked at him for a few moments, nodded her head slowly, honestly she had no clue what was going on. "This feels strange." The comment made Naruto laugh.

"So it should, this is not your head, the only reason I am used to it is well, you will find out soon enough anyway." Minato nodded as did Natsumi, following the black-haired man as he trudged through the sewer.

**"YOU." **The fox screamed as Naruto came into its vision

"Are you going to be stubborn, or will you be a good fox, and listen to what I have to say?" He heard the snarling behind the cage and walked through the bars, both Natsumi and Minato telling him to stop.

The large beast raised its claw to strike Naruto down, he frowned and rose his hand before vanishing and appearing on the foxes head slamming the hand down, lighting shocking the fox causing it to growl. "Stop being a pain, for a demon lord, you behaviour is unbecoming." The fox started to thrash around and Naruto shocked it again.

**"Is this how you dealt with me the first time?" **Naruto shook his head at the foxes question.

"I used my eyes to trick it into giving me its chakra, forcing it to kill itself. Now will you listen to what I have to say?" The fox stopped moving and glared at Naruto. "Kurama." Naruto smirked at the shocked look on his face. "I am going to get off of your head, when I do we will talk. If you try to attack me... I will trap you in a hell you can not escape from."

Natsumi and Minato watched shocked as Naruto flipped off the foxes head landing softly on the ground, the great beast lowering itself to his level. "We are the same." The fox snorted until Naruto lifted up his left bang. "A gift from my stepmother, I love it so much I take it everywhere I go."

**"I don't need your sarcasm." **The fox spoke half heartedly, honestly it was good to talk to someone, even if they were and Uchiha.

"Having the world locked away from us, anyway I will make this quick, Natsumi is the boss, if you behave I will teach her a way to let you roam around, in the world in a civilian body." The fox was about to roar at Naruto. "There are two other ways I can do this, neither are pleasant." Do you want to accept the one that will give you freedom if you behave?

**"Pushy Ningen. If the blonde is anything like you, I will accept." **Naruto smirked a little.

"I don't know if she is like me, this is my first time meeting her, _but _do anything that will harm my little sister, you will be begging that death will claim you." Naruto's voice was cold enough to cut through steel, the fox narrowed his eyes but saw Naruto change his.

**"Madara... that old man had a kid?" **

"A daughter, I am her son." The fox raised a brow, Naruto opened the locket around his neck and showed the fox.

**"Sorry for your loss." **

"And I yours, I am here if you need to talk." Kurama nodded, it was strange, talking to someone who knew everything about you. "Natsumi, father, you can come here if you wish." Naruto saw the heated glare Kurama put on as he saw the man who put him there.

Natsumi bowed to the fox as did Minato, Naruto found this incredibly odd. "Kyuu-"

**"Can I get a new ningen?" **Kurama looked to Naruto for his answer, the raven-haired man stifled a laugh while little Natsumi was trying her best not to blow up. **"You heard your brother, my name is Kurama."**

Natsumi gave a light glare but nodded. "Kurama, I look forward to working with you." The large fox rose a brow at Naruto, said man shrugged.

"Do you want me to establish a link so you two can talk or do you have that ready to go already Kurama?" Kyuubi snorted and rolled his eyes. "You have a better temper than my half did, also before we go, there is something I need to show you all." The group nodded as Naruto lifted up his left bang showing the seal around his eye to all, Natsumi thinking it was a tattoo complimented him on how cool it looked, the entire room dropped in temperature, it was not from Naruto though.

No Kurama was angry. **"That is not 'cool' ningen, that is a leash, a brand. It is used to force you under someone's will. Do not ever say such disgusting things in front of me again."** Kurama bellowed, the waters around them had vanished from the force in his voice.

"Naruto... is this what I think it is?" Naruto nodded grimly at his father

"What, what is it?"

"Natsumi-chan, that is a Uzumaki seal."

* * *

**Anbu Years**

Naruto panted on the ground, his mask, while he treasured it, was currently in the way. Pulling it off to the side he emptied his stomach, a firm hand patted him on the back. "Well done Oni, you killed the traitor."

_'Why don't I feel like I did good then?' _Naruto wiped his mouth and caught a bottle that was thrown towards him, twisting its lid and washing his face and mouth. "This is what a stage 3 Raiton can do to a body eh?" Naruto nodded weakly still trying to catch his breath. "I can't imagine it was a peaceful way to go, ain't no need to worry 'bout that is there Oni?"

"Rat was a rat, he was not worthy to enter our den Snake." The man chuckled behind his snake mask.

"Ahh that he was, was he tasty Oni?" This man bugged Naruto, but he was the veteran in their partnership.

"A rat can not provide a fitting meal, even if I am only a small Oni." He gave a sadistic grin to his partner causing him to gasp.

"Oni, you have bits of rib cage in your mouth." Naruto panicked and quickly tried to wash it out, only stopping when he saw Snake holding his sides. "Sorry it was your hair not mouth."

Naruto groaned as he picked himself up and shakily stood to his feet, he didn't stay standing long, he was quickly thrown over the shoulder of snake, said man chucked the Oni mask back over Naruto's face and headed back to HQ.

People cleared a path for the pair, their job was well known, it was surprising Naruto was chosen at such a young age, only 10 and already an executor. An executor, in a few words, is an Anbu who is trained to kill Anbu, when the old Oni vanished after passing Naruto, snake quickly snapped the boy up, holding him close ever since. It was not just Anbu they hunted, no, from the top of the top right down to civilians, if they needed to be killed to protect the hidden leaf, an Executor was already watching them.

"Do you find it strange Oni?" Naruto grunted at the man's question. "I suppose you are right, they should sell Pizza on thursday."

"Sometimes I wonder if you act that way to bug me." Snake put Naruto down on the ground and patted his head.

"Does it work?"

"Not nearly as well as it should." Snake chuckled at Naruto's comment.

"What am I going to do with you Oni?"

* * *

**PA: There, and the second installment of Anbu Years in place just to top it off, did something surprise you in this chapter? If so chuck us a review XD Till next time.**


	4. Chapter 4

**PA:Thanks all for reviewing again. Now there were a lot of questions asked about the last chapter so I shall start answering them, if you don't want to read them just skip down to the disclaimer.**

**plums- Trust me I plan on making that incredibly awkward. Kurenai will be moving out before the jounin exams, but so will Naruto?****  
**

**Kushina's smirking, I really didn't do a good job on that, Kushina herself hates anything demonic because of her linage, thus she hates red eyes as they are normally considered to be a demonic sign, this will be further explained as Naruto and Kushina's relationship is expanded upon over the next few chapters.**

**Natsumi had heard her father talk about her brother, but she hadn't met him because of Kushina being who she is in this fic, plus Minato and Naruto working.**

**Naruto's slave seal was designed to activate if he talked to or showed _humans_ it _purposely_, I really stress those words. Minato had no idea about the seal, because Naruto could not show it to anyone that could speak about it, if you look back at chapter two when Kurenai sees it and asks about it, he closes up and becomes defensive.  
**

**Kushina is not legally allowed to do this, you will find out what happens to her in this chapter. Minato using the explanation of Naruto being kept on a leash was merely a coincidence to what Naruto's situation actually is.**

**In the second paragraph of this one, Naruto talks about a time delay, seeing as he used his sharingan to enter the mindscape, I figured I would make it a little like Tsukuyomi ****where the time is much different to the real world.**

** 55- No she will not be like that for the entire story.**

**bcsclaaymore- What is wrong with his health will be explained a little further down the track, but it does not have anything to do with the seal or his eyes. Naruto studied the seal but found he was unable to remove it. Natsumi knew she had a brother, but she didn't know that Naruto was her brother. **

**If you look up a little your question was answered above in the paragraph starting Naruto's slave seal.**

**PA: I think I got everyone's questions, if I missed out on yours and it isn't answered in this chapter just PM and I will get back to you soon.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

"Did Kushina do this?" Minato's voice was like steel cutting through the air of depression and shock that surrounded the group. Naruto nodded weakly and dropped his bang, falling to his knees shortly after.

"gah, the time delay was not as long as I suspected." He coughed into his hand, wiping the blood that covered it away on his pants. Blood started to trickle from his mouth, he turned his head to the side and smiled at his father. "I can get you both out, but I don't know how long I will last once I come out*cough* I just thought you could do with knowing *cough, cough* after all, its my job to protect the village, from _any _threat." Minato placed a hand on his son's shoulder.

"I will fix this up, just get me out of here ok? Also good job Naruto." Naruto struggled to nod as Minato felt the tug on his body sending him back to his office, he didn't give himself a moment to recover, instantly zipping across the room and slamming his wife into the wall. "Remove it." His hair shadowing his face.

"B-but-" She tried to stammer out, only to be roughly slammed against the wall again.

"THATS _MY _SON THERE KUSHINA, REMOVE THE FUCKING SEAL!" His head snapped up showing the untamable anger in his eyes. A defeated look came across her face. She pushed him away.

"I did everything for you and Natsumi, I just want you to know this." She stumbled over to the form of Naruto, seeing a sight that chilled her to the core.

"C-come on m-mister, don't you go dying on me." Naruto was in the hands of her daughter, she kept talking to him trying to keep him awake as he bled. Kushina tightened her fists and looked back at her husband, the betrayed look on his face, hurt her more than anything right now. She fiddled around in her pouch, drawing a kunai.

She was forced to pause as four Anbu were at her throat, blades drawn and poised to strike. "If you don't let me do this, he _will _die." She spat out, raising the Kunai and slicing her hand open, drawing it over the seal and watching her blood splatter again his face, she tossed the kunai aside and quickly traced the seal around his eye in her blood. Taking a deep sigh she brought her hands up to form the ram seal. "Kai." The blood started to evaporate, taking the seal along with it.

"I did it for both of you." Her head hung low, there was a small thud followed by a slap. Kushina stumbled back, raising her eyes just enough to see her daughter shaking.

"I didn't want this, you hiding my brother, caging him like an animal, what kind of parent would do those things?" Natsumi tightened her fists moving forward to strike her mother, a large hand softly covering her delicate ones, pausing her in her stride.

"S-she did it to protec-ct you, d-don't h-hate your mother, y-you don't know h-how lucky you a-are." His hand slowly fell away, a blur of yellow flew across the room, quickly scooping up his son and vanishing in a golden light.

"Natsumi-chan, I was trying to protect you h-he is-"

"HE IS MY BROTHER!" Kushina flinched at the anger in her daughter's voice. "What, what you did is wrong, I can't hate you, but I don't know if I will ever look past this." Natsumi walked from the room leaving her spluttering mother behind her.

* * *

Yugao was frozen, Kurenai was kneeling on the ground in shock, Kurenai had just overheard information she assumed was meant to be for Anbu only. "How could this happen?" The Neko masked woman chocked out. She couldn't fathom the thought of something like this happening.

"It was placed on him before he became a chunin. It was meant to activate as soon as Hokage-sama saw it." Yugao flinched. He was a chunin at Six, how could someone do that to a child?

"How is he?" The Anbu across from her stiffened in his place.

"Naruto-sama, he is in a bad shape. It isn't getting worse, but it isn't getting better either. His body will burn out if he keeps trying to hold his condition still though." The tell-tale signs of a shunshin were heard and Kurenai was gone.

"Thank You, this is a lot to ask, but can you find Anko and inform her?"

"Mitarashi Anko was just sent on a mission with a group of Anbu by Hokage-sama." Yugao frowned beneath her mask.

"I guess she must already know then. Thankyou Snake. I know how you felt towards him." She mumbled clutching her arms tightly.

"It is not a problem, Naruto showed me how to become better than what I was, my loyalty to him is second only to the Hokage." The man snapped to attention.

"Sometimes I wonder about that Snake." The rubbed his head under the accusing eye of Yugao.

"Old habits die hard, you too still feel like following his every order, don't you?" She stiffened in place giving Snake the answer he needed, Snake turned on his feet and vanished leaving Yugoa standing in her place.

"Naruto-sama, what would I be if it weren't for you?" She mused looking up into the sky, she remembered seeing how Kurenai acted towards him and frowned. "I do not believe she is worth your time."

* * *

Kurenai stood in the waiting area of Konoha's hospital, her fists clenched and indented in the desk. "Kurenai, you are making an awful noise down here." A sleepy blonde headed man said as he leaned against the wall, resting his pounding head.

"Gomen Hokage-sama, I didn't see you there." He waved his hand dismissively. Slowly pushing himself from the wall.

"If I was to order you to kill my son... could you do it?" He saw the raven-haired beauty that was found of his son, stiffen and turn into a stumbling mess.

"I-I-I don't know Hokage-sama." Minato smirked where he stood causing her to become confused.

"Tonight I realized something... I failed my son as a father, I want to believe that I tonight, took the first steps to righting what I did wrong, sadly it never should have happened in the first place. I don't know if he will ever forgive me, part of me hopes he doesn't. I don't want you to make the same mistake ok?" She nodded dumbly at him causing his smile to widen as he moved forward putting a hand on her head. "Thats an order. Now come with me, I assume you are here to see him?"

"Uh Hai Hokage-sama." She gave a quick bow then let herself be escorted into his room. She felt a pair of eyes boring into her as she walked alongside the Hokage, it made her feel on edge. Minato braced his hand against the door.

"I will just warn you, he has seen better days." Kurenai gulped and took a deep breath, giving a small nod, Minato slid the door open, the sounds of machines working hard filled the air, the room was littered with Anbu, four were standing right behind the doctors as they worked, sweat was running onto their brows, whether it was from working hard or being under so much pressure remained to be decided.

His hair was not shiny like normal, no it looked to be dry and sick just like the person it belonged to. His body was wrapped in bandages, a machine over his mouth to help him breath as his eyes stayed shut. She tried to think of it like a training exercise, he would open them soon and tell her she failed, dispelling any illusion she had in place. She started pleading inside, begging them to open.

"He has seen better days hasn't he." The voice shocked those in the room, looking around as Tai-long came into view, stepping out of the air itself. The Anbu moved to attack.

"STOP!" They paused and tilted their head towards Kurenai, even Minato was now looking at her. "He has been living with Naruto for sometime now, he is like a companion of sorts." She felt nervous under their gaze.

"I am sorry but you will be kept under tight surveillance Mr?" Minato spoke to the tiger, it was a little stranger than talking to toads.

"Tai-long, just call me Tai, so, his cage was removed I take it?" Minato looked at the cryptic tiger, giving an uneasy nod.

"The seal had already started to destroy his body, he knew we didn't have the medics to fix him, so he froze his body in a death like state. The machines are barely keeping him alive while the only person I trust to heal him is being hunted down." Minato clenched his fists as he talked. "I have done everything I can, yet his life hangs in the hands of another." Kurenai flinched at the tone in his voice, the description of Naruto's condition didn't help at all.

The sounds of things being tipped over was heard from through the door, Minato turned on his feet sliding it open, a pissed off Anbu member was knelt down with a blade at Kushina's throat. "Hokage-sama, she was disturbing the patients." The Anbu spoke without even turning around.

"I assume Natsumi isn't too far then?" His response was the Anbu raising her arm and pointing just to her left where his blonde daughter stood, barely needing to be restrained at all, standing calmly with two Anbu hands rested on her shoulders. "Neko, bring them in, Kushina deserves to see what she has done."

The cat masked Anbu growled but picked the red-head up none to gently and dragged her into the room, forcing her to stare at the unmoving body, every head in the room turned to look at her, the Anbu restraining themselves from lashing out. "Out of everything he has been through, his stepmother, someone who is meant to look out for him, was able to do the most damage, if we hadn't been ordered to let you live, I would have killed you alrea-"

"Neko that is quite enough, as I said, Naruto will decide her punishment." The Anbu shivered some even feeling a small amount of pity for the redhead. Kurenai stood directly in front of Kushina shaking, her beautiful hair shadowing her eyes.

"W-what kind of monster are you?" She got out as a whisper, with the silence in the room it was as clear as day. "He tries his best, he works harder than anyone I have seen, even when he was relived of duty he still helped train those below him. He took Anko and myself in when we had nowhere to go, there is not a bad bone in his body. So, please tell me why you did this?" Kurenai pleaded with tears in her eyes as she looked up

Kushina stuck her head up and looked for words. "I did it to protect my family."

"HE IS YOUR FAMILY!" Kurenai shot back having had enough and actually landed a fist into her stomach doubling the Uzumaki clan head over."

"Kurenai, enough." Came Minato's cold voice. "Everyone that is not stationed here leave, this room is off-limits until further notice." Natsumi shook her head as she moved forward, slowly taking up Naruto's hand in her own.

"Rest up Onii-chan, I want to hear about your adventures one day." Minato looked down at his daughter and placed a hand on her head, this must be straining for her, so much information being pushed into her in one day. He saw the small tear that ran down her face as she slowly let go. "I will see you soon ok?" She gave herself a nod and walked out of the room, everyone else being pushed out after, Minato looked down at the tiger and motioned for him to leave.

"Not going to happen, also, Naruto was going to help Uchiha Sasuke train tomorrow, do you think you can have someone take his place?" Tai questioned as he moved around and got himself comfortable on the floor.

"I will have someone look after Sasuke tomorrow." The large tiger nodded its head before resting it on the top of its paws.

* * *

"Uchiha Sasuke." The raven-haired boy had just walked out of the academy, he was rounded by four Anbu.

"What's going on?" The one who spoke, clearly female, took a step forward approaching the boy.

"Uchiha Naruto has become incapacitated, he will be unable to train you for some time." Sasuke snorted and tried to walk past.

"I should have expected something like that, Itachi was right, he is just a beast." He didn't have any time to react as the purple haired Anbu had swept him off of his feet, pinned him to the ground and now rested a sword right next to his ear.

"You will do best not to insult our previous commander for something out of his hands. Now as I was going to say, we offered to take his place so he held up his end, partially, you will still receive training, but it will be from us four, not Naruto-sama." She took her knee from his chest and picked him off of the ground, the students around them staring at the Anbu, keeping their distance, mostly.

"Hiya Neko-chan." Neko turned to meet Natsumi who had a bright grin on her face. "I thought you would be watching over Onii-chan still?" She tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"I am helping out Naruto-sama by training Uchiha Sasuke. I will be taking a shift guarding him later tonight... why do you ask?" Natsumi leaned forward and eyed the purple haired Anbu.

"Hehe no reason." Said a giggling Natsumi as she walked away. "Bye Neko-chan." Yugao looked at the girl, she was very strange, almost as strange as drunk Naruto. A small shiver ran down her spine, that was a bad night to be in Anbu HQ.

"Neko-Taichou, should we have someone check her out?" A multitude of thoughts ran through Yugao's head, stopping on the final and most important one, Naruto-sama was protected by at least one Squad at any given moment.

"Naruto-sama if being protected by Anbu, he will be fine." Saying those words made her feel uneasy.

* * *

"Senju Tsunade, you are to come with us." The blonde Senju looked around at the Anbu that had surrounded her, instantly noting that one wasn't an Anbu, her purple hair tied back into a ponytail shaped like a pineapple.

"You would be?" She raised an eyebrow while Shizune clutched her pig tightly.

"Why are from Konoha, Hokage-sama has ordered your to return and heel some injured." Anko stepped forward, and got to her knees.

"Tsunade-sama, we need you to come back, please?" The Senju flinched a little, stepping back.

"I think you lot have some explaining to do, ne?" 3 more squads of Anbu dropped down around her. "Or I guess we can walk and talk?" Anko nodded her head and stood turning on her feet.

"This was just incase you didn't come quietly, we need you to heal Uchiha Naruto." Tsunade stopped in her tracks and looked up at the sky.

"The child of prophecy, huh? Thats a pretty tall ask ya know?" Anko bobbed her head as she moved.

"Our medics struck out, he knew they would to so he put his body in a stasis of sorts until someone would be able to heal him. We hope that someone is you, otherwise we have no clue where to turn to." She raised her arms and shook her head. "pretty much, you're our last hope, also just incase you were thinking about running, each Anbu with me is an executor, trained by Naruto himself. They all volunteered for this mission." Looking around Tsunade saw the different types of weapons they all used sickles, chains, karma, there were a few scythes and even a broadsword or two.

This was definitely not the standard group of Anbu. "Executors, they weren't around when I left. What do they do?"

A Hanya masked Anbu moved away and stood next to the Senju woman. "We Executors, huh, well Naruto-sama trained us to hunt down rogue jounin and above. Mostly though, we take on the missions that no one else should have to know about." The Senju was about to snort when she felt 16 different pokes around her body, causing her to flinch, looking around it seemed like none of the Anbu had moved.

"I get the point, but if you are so highly ranked, why did pineapple head do the talking?" Anko looked around at the group and pouted.

"Hehe, because Anko-chan is sooo cute." The group went quite, the Anbu turned towards a man brandishing a large scythe.

"Wolf you are a freak, just be quiet." He ran his hand along where his mouth would sit, showing he zipped them. "Forgive him, some of us needed to change, fitting into this life isn't for everyone." Anko looked around to the Hanya woman with question on her face.

"Did Naruto have to change?" The Anbu seemed to look around for a few moments before they started laughing.

"Naruto was born for the job honey, you should of seen the test he gave the recruits this one time."

* * *

Yugao shivered as she stood on duty, something wasn't right in the world. "Taichou are you ok?"

She tilted her head to the side. "I am fine why?" The Anbu's mask was blank, she reached for the blade on her back.

"Teishi." Three Anbu froze in place, the curtains paused what they were doing and the machines stopped their jobs. The masked figure removed the blank sheet from his face, scars riddled his face as vicious smirk threatening to break free. His golden eyes shining down as he drew his kunai holding it against Naruto jugular. "Little Oni, lets see what you have been up to in my time away?"

* * *

It was damp and dark. The air was filled with vile chakra, the golden eyed man strode through the halls of this sewer, stopping as it came to a large room. "I thought I felt you out there." The voice came from behind the bars, two pairs of crimson eyes looking through at the shadowed man.

Said man moved forward towards the bars, a large fox lashing against them. **"Ningen, why is this trash in our den?"**

"I don't know Kurama, but I think we should trash the fiend." A large white tiger moved forward and stood next to Naruto.

"Deception, such a wonderful art isn't it?" Naruto snorted at the man, pulling a chair from the ground and sitting down.

"Why don't you take a seat? It has been such a long time after all." With a flick of his wrist he pulled another chair from the ground.

"You have gotten better at this Little Oni. Been working hard with your inner demon I see?" The large fox bared its teeth and gave the man a snarl.

"I see you reached Stage 3 as well. Not as much fun as I made it sound, was it?" The golden eyed man chuckled a little.

"No it was exactly as you described it, I felt reborn. I even made a genjutsu backfire to see like you, it is interesting, hazing outlines of people, seeing sound and chakra reserves as well as when people expend it, if it could see scents I would call it the perfect tracking eye." Naruto rose his brows at the man.

"So now that you have seen the world like I have, what do you think? You take colour away, strip everything down to its most basic form, what are you left with?" The two looked at eachother for some time, seemingly coming to the same answer.

"Morals and Loyalty." The spoke in time, putting the Kyuubi on edge slightly, it was scaring to think at what these two lightning rods could accomplish.

"You know, I stood over your bed for awhile, wondering if I should kill you or not." Two occupants narrowed eyes while one raised a brow.

"Did you come to a decision?" Naruto's calm voice spoke. Shocking the two standing near him.

"Nope, kind of just stood there, I felt stupid after a little so I came in here." Naruto frowned, that didn't sound like the man he knew.

"How does it feel, now that the seal is gone?" He got a shrug from the three occupants.

"I don't feel the need to brutally kill the people that live in my house... if thats what you were getting at?" The man sitting on the lone side of the bars shook his head.

"Thats not what I was getting at... the removed the leash and shock collar, how does it feel to be free?" Naruto widened his eyes at the word, mouthing it a few times just to taste it.

"That word, it is still out of my reach. I see that you have perfected your time altering barrier?" A small chuckle came from the lone man.

"I have completed it, not perfected it." Naruto smirked while the fox looked between the two.

**"Ningen, why tell him your jutsu is not perfect?" **The lone man gave a bone chilling smile.

"Because, I know the weakness behind his greatest jutsu." This caused Naruto to laugh from where he sat.

"I have a rather different skill set now. It would seem that you have walked into a den that you know nothing about, outnumbered, but are you outmatched? Who knows? Will you draw first, or will this be a peaceful conversation? All questions that we should already have the answers to, yet here I sit and ponder." Naruto rested his elbow on his leg, his hand resting steady as his head lay upon it. His eyes closed and his tilted to the side as a small smile was on his face.

"You are just as strange as I remember, always thinking things through so much, but never voicing the question you really want to answer. 'What will happen if?'. Maybe if you thought about what would happen once you did something, you may not get into such bothersome messes." Naruto frowned, giving his shoulders a light shrug a moment later.

"I enjoy being strange, asking the questions that many just guess. It makes your opponent think more, making them more dangerous, it is fun when they fight with their mind. Plus I am going to assume you are already fixing me up? Bailing me out of another 'bothersome mess' as you would so call it?" The tiger lifted its head to see the two men in similar stances, quickly dropping it and going back to sleep, there conversation bored him quite some time ago.

"I am indeed, kind of makes me shocked that I thought about killing you at the start, it seems rather pointless now that I am healing you."

"And you call me strange?"

* * *

The house was so quiet, she couldn't bring herself to leave though, no now it felt like she needed to be here. A deep sigh left her lips as she stood her black hair shifting with her strides as she moved to the table. Her red eyes skimming across the information in front of her. 'Bad Blood, Written by Uchiha Madara.' Lay in front of her, flicking through the first few pages of the book as they were about the Senju and Uchiha, she paused looking at the Final Valley.

It was a drawing made from the Uchiha's description, Madara and Hashirama locked in a heated battle, above them towered the Kyuubi and some strange wooden statue. "You two really were in a league of your own." Flicking through the next few pages she stopped as a name jumped out at her. "Uzumaki... isn't Kushina-sama a Uzumaki?"

Reading further down the page she found that the two clans had been fighting for even longer then the Uchiha had with the Senju. "The Whirlpool's blood can wash away the darkness." That sentence made no sense to her, flicking through a few more pages she was forced to drop the book.

Her arms curling around her waist tightly. Diagrams littered the page, showing how to achieve Teir Three Manipulation, all of them were disgustingly brutal. "Would Naruto approve of you looking through these books?" A calm voice spoke into her ear, she jumped away and hands ran through seals attempting to perform a rushed genjutsu. It took its effect but he merely waved it away. "Hmmm, not bad, still leagues away from being able to hold me in one." The figure moved forward his hand brushing over the book.

Kurenai flung a kunai at him, the masked man caught it by sticking a finger through its loop. "Can you please stop that, I am trying to read." He didn't even look up from the pages. Finding what he was looking for he pulled out a blank scroll and copied it down, he rolled the now filled scroll up and placed it into his pants, his blank mask looking up at Kurenai. "He is awake now."

"What do you mean?" This man was different, she couldn't detect anything from him. "His body can't be fixed yet."

The man chuckled. "It was a parting gift, in exchange I got to look over this book again. Thank you for making it easy to find." He vanished, no smoke or anything signalling he left, he was just gone.

Grabbing the keys on the counter she locked up the house and bolted across the village, she would check the hospital first, to see if what the man said added up. Entering its doors she saw Anbu, doctors and nurses all rushing around, a blur of blonde whipped past her as it moved down the hall to Naruto's room.

"I told you I am fine." That voice, her face light up as she heard it, running down the hall only to be stopped by a squad of Anbu. "Why do you keep pestering me? I am fine."

"Naruto-sama, we must finish running the tests before we clear you." She heard some shuffling around int he room, the door sliding open revealing Naruto in a hospital gown.

"You can finish the tests as I move, I am hungry." A small hand landed on his shoulder causing him to raise a brow.

"Naruto-sama, please just rest I will acquire what you wish to eat." His shoulders seemed to slump in defeat.

"Fine Neko, I would like some BBQ, if they are still open, if not some peanut satay noodles." His head turned down the hall and saw Kurenai standing there. "You hungry?" She went to shake her head, her stomach sadly beat her to it and grumbled. "Make that for three, knowing you Neko, you haven't eaten yet either, just let me get my wallet." Naruto walked back into the room, Neko walking out and looking at Kurenai. "Wait thats four, someone forgot to feed Tai." He walked back out and handed over a lump of cash to the cat faced Anbu.

"Hai Naruto-sama, I will be back soon." Her purple hair swaying along with her hips as she swayed down the hall grabbing the attention of the male Anbu.

"You can let go of Kurenai, like I said I am fine." He waved his hand turning back around and entering his room, taking a seat on his bed again instantly being pestered by his father and the medics."So how long are these tests going to take? Also you sure you aren't hungry Hokage-sama?"

Minato just let out a sigh. "Just call me Minato, it feel strange having you be so respectful to me, I don't exactly deserve it." Naruto just shook his head.

"You are an excellent shinobi though, that deserves respect, plus you haven't answered my question." Naruto was being prodded by needles and having hands flow over him as the tests were done.

"They shouldn't take more than 15 minutes, plus I ate at home, and that wasn't what I meant Naruto." The black-haired man just shrugged his shoulders. He looked at Kurenai who was standing there looking out-of-place.

"Snake, can you please fetch Kurenai a chair?" His question was answered as a chair was unfolded beneath the crimson eyed beauty. "Why are you so quiet?" His question was directed at Kurenai, all heads turned to her and she felt embarrassed at being the centre of attention.

"W-well there was someone strange in your house, I was just thinking about it." Naruto rose a brow. Minato turned to her and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Was he wearing a blank Anbu mask?" Kurenai stiffly nodded giving him the answer he had dreaded.

"See Naruto he can enter your house at any time." Naruto sighed as he brush the bang covering his left eye behind his ear, showing his golden eyes to the world.

"Minato, like I said, I would be dead if he wanted, he caught me out even with the Anbu guards, we talked he healed me and I let him look through one of my books." He saw Kurenai stiffen and chuckled. "Did you read 'Bad Blood' Kurenai?" She nodded, worry was on her face. "My grandfather and clan had some interesting views on the world. Did you reach the ninjutsu section." He tapped his eyes as he spoke to her, causing her to gasp.

"Naruto this is serious, the Anbu couldn't stop him tonight." The Uchiha just sighed.

"He is dangerous yes, but I am the only one that can fight him, he knows that, thats why he won't attack me when I am not at my best." He shook his head. "Plus he was mostly just here to talk and get some information from my books, he asked unlike some people." He poked his tongue out at Kurenai causing her to blush.

The rest of the tests were finished in relatively quietly, only Naruto's stomach dared break the peace, Yugao returning a short time after carrying bags full of noodle box, a small brown bag was placed off to the side. The Anbu looked at Naruto for some time. "Oh I almost forgot, he clicked his fingers casting a genjutsu over her face, to anyone but him it looked like she was still wearing her mask. She pulled it off and placed it to the side surprising Kurenai. "Thank you Neko, also Kurenai, if you try to undo the genjutsu, she is legally allowed to kill you." Kurenai gulped as a box of noodles was dropped into her lap. "So how long was I out for?"

Yugao tilted her head from side to side, slurping up a long stream of noodles, taking a small breath before she talked. "Three days, things were pretty quiet around here, also that Uchiha brat really needs an attitude adjustment." Naruto sighed as he poked around at his noodles, slowly swirling them around his chopsticks and lifting it up to his mouth, some sauce splashing his face. Yugao giggled as she sat on his bed, wiping it off with a piece of cloth, Kurenai frowned at how close the two looked.

"I was saving that for later." He crumbled out causing the girls to chuckle as he pouted. "But yeah I know, Sasuke is going to be a real pain, plus I also have to help Kurenai and Anko train for the jounin exams." Yugao rose a brow that was hidden from the female sitting on the chair. Yugao of course seeing it as her right, sat on Naruto's bed with him, her legs crossed with her box of noodles between her legs.

"You don't have to Naruto." Kurenai shot out causing Naruto to raise a brow.

"I kinda do, I mean I said I would, everyone knows it is hard for a Uchiha to go back on his or her word." He spoke raising his hand up like he was taking an oath.

"No Naruto-sama, I think that is just you, the rest of your clan, no offense of course, was pretty shady." She pointed her chopsticks at him for emphasis.

"Uh maybe, hey what's in the bag Neko?" She sighed as she turned around and fetched it.

"I picked up some pocky, I know its meant to be an after mission thing, but I just felt that it seemed right, now that you are back on your feet and all?" Naruto nodded, he seemed ok with the idea while Kurenai looked confused.

"You like pocky Naruto?"

"You didn't know Kurenai-san?" Yugao gasped in 'shock'. "Naruto-sama loves pocky, I still remember when him and Weasel went to a convention about it, claiming it was a super important missions about the security of the village." Naruto smiled sadly remembering the day, him and Itachi started bonding, it was that day he took the Uchiha under his belt.

"Honestly in a way it was, without my pocky I find it hard to perform at my best." Kurenai and Yugao's minds raced to slightly naughtier thoughts.

"I will have to remember that Na-ru-to-sama." The purplette purred, confusing Naruto further.

There was a knock at the door bringing the group out of their conversation as a doctor walked in holding a clipboard. "Naruto-sama, you have been cleared to leave, you will return to active duty in two weeks to give your body proper time to heal, in the meantime take it easy with your training, I don't want to see you back in here so quickly." Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, as the doctor left his visage changed and he became serious.

"Kurenai I will be talking to Hokage-sama tomorrow, when Anko gets back you two will be going through boot-camp... Naruto style." Yugao paled and patted Kurenai lightly on the shoulder.

"Good luck, you will need it." Kurenai stiffened at the Anbu's touch, why did they always smell of blood?

Naruto was putting his clothes on, a stick of pocky hanging from his mouth, he was glad someone had washed them. Kurenai had headed back to his saying she would see him soon while Yugao stood in the corner waiting for him to finish getting dressed. "That was Oni that appeared tonight wasn't it?" She questioned Naruto as he yanked his jeans on, pulled up the fly and did the button, chucking his white shirt over the top as he fiddled with the buttons, Yugao sighed and moved forward, starting to play with the buttons as she slowly did them up, Naruto rolling his sleeves up to put them in a comfortable position.

"Yes that was the previous Oni." He frowned his sleeves were now in place, but Yugao had only done two buttons, he patted her on top of the head, missing the small blush on her cheeks.

"What did he want?" She asked pulling away from him, and looking up at his face, he turned his head out and looked across the village.

"He just wants to have fun."

* * *

**Anbu Years.**

His feet landed without a sound, a black suit covering his form, hiding his identity from anyone who was seeking it. He reached up to his back, a seal on his right shoulder glowing white for a moment, bringing his hand back to his front his bow formed.

A quiver slowly burning into existence on his back, with deft movements his hand reached up pulling an arrow out and notching it on his bow. His trained eye still on his target. Pulling the string back he made sure the shot was lined up. His fingers slowly letting go of the string, watching as his arrow flew true, without a sound, breaking through the glass and striking through his targets skull, pinning him to the wall. "Twenty Eight." He vanished from where he stood, appearing up in a tree moments later.

Stepping back into the shadows to stay hidden as he lined up the shot, his chakra keeping him to the tree. "Two guards." Pulling another arrow from his quiver, the two guards were talking as they walked, the bow-string was tight, his fingers slipping from it once again as the arrow flew, this time Naruto vanished with it, his arrow cutting through one of the guards cleaning.

His friend looking to where his partner was now that it had gone quiet. He gasped seeing the pool of blood that was forming, he reached up to talk into his communicator, he went to speak but only a gargle came out, raising his head to his throat it was wet, looking around suited child walked out of the shadows, fiddling with a blood covered kunai. "Good night." A quick flick of his wrist, his hands were now free and a dull thud sounded as his continued through the night.

"All guards down, now working my way inside."

"Roger Taichou." He frowned, his partner was so young, 10 years old, a female with purple hair, she was too inexperienced to be doing this op, hence why Naruto made her sit back and watch from a distance. He quickly scaled the wall stopping next to a window, taking a quick peek he saw his targets, he picked the lock for the window and let himself in, disabling the trap and dropping his feet to the ground, there was a stir from the bed, as he moved his bow to his back, it vanished while his hand stayed there a katana forming just as he reached the bed, two quick slices, no noise. He watched as the sheets became strained.

Corrupt Fire Country Lords, his orders came from the Daimyo this time. Had he just become a tool for his village to hire out? The door to the bedroom he was in slowly opened and a child, maybe the age of four walked in slowly, crying out about a nightmare. Naruto frowned under his mask, there was no notes about there being children. His kanta was sealed away as he moved forward, not a drop on his person, he quickly checked for a henge finding it was not he crouched down to the girls level, letting the helmet of his suit fall away, his red eyes spinning, a small mole sat under her lips on the left side, her grey eyes looked up into his, allowing him to cast the genjutsu.

"You are to go back to bed little one, when you wake in the morning, you will back food and water into a bag and walk, you are to keep walking until you find someone you know. Now go to bed little one, the nightmare will be over soon." She small child clutched her teddy bear closely giving him a small nod and walking back out of the room. Naruto sighed, quickly cutting off the heads of his targets and putting them into a scroll. His helmet scaling back up from his neck, covering his head. He once again became one with the shadows as he walked down the halls, finding his way to the cellar, he quickly cut through the lock and pushed the door open. Girls of all ages laid huddled in a mess, straw was thrown onto the ground for bedding, while their water and food was kept in dishes like they were animals.

"Your captors are gone, the guards are dead, you are free." He spoke vanishing and letting them go, A pair of green eyes burning that image into her mind, she would not forget that outfit.

Naruto dropped down onto a tree, he made the motion needed for his partner to come out, she took a shaky step forward, her purple hair sparkling in the moonlight. "Taichou." She bowed, Naruto stood to his full height, a foot higher than the girl and patted her head.

"Come on Neko, the mission is done, let's head home."

* * *

**PA: Yes there is a back story behind Yugao and Naruto, that is the section we are reaching into during the Anbu years, Itachi's section is after Yugao's. As always my kick ass readers chuck us a review and I will do my best to answer any question you have. Until next time. **

**Teishi- Means Stop, or at least that is what my translator is telling me:D**


	5. Chapter 5

**PA: This took a little longer to come out than normal, it is double the length of the majority though, that counts for something right? Also I have posted the teaser chapter for the Warframe fic in the poll list, the other two or more teasers will be put out shortly.**

**Santa1: Kinda, there is a little part of why it happened in this chapter, but yes it does have to do with becoming 'one' so to say.**

**McCabeRz: Ta man, yeah a few things haven't come across quite as I planned, mostly because, my mind tends to be incredibly active. He doesn't have an anchor your right, but Itachi pointed out what his issue is, Naruto simply does not know what to do. But yeah I will probs be going through it and touching it up at a later date, I have started doing this with two of my other stories, but alas got incredibly side tracked. **

**DoomMarine54:... I don't even need to respond, with a name like that you torture yourself enough.**

**Cerulean Knight: Oni will be coming back at many points through the story, he will not be revealed 'until it makes its final move.' Oni is a mystery character of sorts at the moment, I am still up in the air with what I want to do with him, any suggestions are welcomed all.**

**Naruto ages,**

**Rookie 9, 12 turning 13**

**Anko, Iruka and Kurenai- 20 turning 21**

**Naruto, 23 as of this chapter.**

**Asuma and Kakashi are around 26-28**

**Minato is 44 while Kushina is 43.**

**Tsunade is 50 like cannon.**

**Breathless Voice: Hope that answered your question.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

A sickening snap was heard in the small office, followed by the sound of blood dripping against the floor. Two blondes looked shocked at the bored black-haired man. Bone currently protruding from his arm. "Why did you go and do that!"

Naruto casually looked up to the blonde haired Senju, question written on his face. "You said we wasted your time? So I gave you something to heal." He motioned to his arm, Minato pointed at the arm for a few moments giving his son an almost sick look.

"Is that muscle?"

Tsunade let out a sigh as she looked at Naruto's arm, gulping down her breakfast that threatened to come back up. "Ah yes, yes it is... doesn't that hurt Naruto?" He looked at his arm, then to Tsunade, finally letting his gaze stay upon his arm.

"Kinda, soooo, I guess technically I still require healing. " He rose a brow to Tsunade who just put her hands up and shook her head.

"Gaki, I know you can heal that yourself." Naruto shrugged his shoulder and snapped his arm back into place, using his right hand to heal it up. "Now that I am back here for abit, are you going to reconsider the medical academy?" Her arms were crossed under her breasts, her feet a shoulder width apart, this was a stance Naruto was familiar with.

It had only been used on him twice, but both times Yugao ended up getting a free trip to the hotsprings. Now that he thought about it, it seemed like a strong jutsu.

"Naruto... what are you doing?" Both blonde looked at the only other person in the room, who was now mimicking Tsunades stance, or at least trying too.

"This Jutsu, I have not been able to beat, they say the best way to learn to counter a jutsu is to learn it." He nodded his head agreeing with himself while the busty blonde looked at him for a few moments, slowly turning back to face Minato.

"N-naruto, thats not a jutsu, it is like your predatory glare." Realisation struck Naruto as he quickly shifted his stance and stared at the blonde Sannin. Her head shakily turning to the new-found coldness in the room. Sweat started to run down her forehead while Naruto stood there resting his head on his knuckles and looking bored.

"W-what is this?" The Sannin spluttered while Naruto rose a brow.

"A mixture of KI, Kyuubi chakra and primitive facial muscles that were lost in time." Naruto gave his explanation tiredly. "It allows me to appear so far above you that any conflict would just bore me, hence the bored expression, this is what I used to keep bothersome Anbu in line, works everytime." The pressure left the room and Naruto let out a yawn. "Uh do you need me for anything or can I go to the hotsprings?"

"J-just go Naruto, I will see you later."

"Hot springs? Count me in." Minato had a strange look on his face, his son and Tsunade slowly walking away from him without a care in the world.

"I heard Jiraiya is still out-of-town, so you shouldn't have to worry about people trying to sneak a peek."

"Sounds good, I could do with a little relaxing, its been some time since we caught up hasn't it Naruto?" The man in question shrugged his shoulders as they walked.

"A few years, you called for me just after the Uchiha incident, a nasty little problem you had there, almost makes me want to check for grey hairs just thinking about it." Tsunade brought a hand up to cover her mouth as she giggled.

"You were by yourself at that point, what happened to your partner?" Naruto froze for a moment, the air around him going cold, Tsunade desperately struggled for breath. The crowds around them seemed to stop moving, torn between taking in the sight that was the grandchildren of Madara and Hashirama, or fleeing for their own safety.

"Uchiha Itachi, he was my partner, I teamed up with Neko again after the end of that year." She took careful notice of the frown on his face. "I am sorry, I just do not like speaking about what happened in public." She got the hidden meaning in his words. 'The Uchiha Massacre was not what it seemed.'

"Well here we are, this is Konoha's finest, well at least in my books anyway." The Senju motioned to the entrance, Naruto walking behind her and paying for the both of them, they went down the separate halls and changed to enter the springs.

"I am telling you Kurenai, this is the best way to relax on a day off."

"I hardly doubt this is what Naruto was planning for us when he gave it to us."

Two beauties walked in through the doors, paying and entering the change rooms.

* * *

Naruto sat himself down nice and comfortably. Letting out a soft groan as the steamy water touched against his skin. As he sat down in the water it bubbled and boiled, steam raising even higher and blocking him away from view. "Yugao was right, these are relaxing." He scratched his back along the stones in the wall, enjoy the burning feeling they gave off. He took the face towel from the back of his head and draped it over his eyes, slowly seeping further into the water. Letting himself slowly disconnect from the world.

"He is alright, even if he is a Uchiha." Tsunade leaned back, resting an arm over her breasts, she had heard a rumor that if they were large enough they floated, she was not willing to test it, especially in a public spring. A brow was risen as voices entered the area, one of them she noticed instantly. "Gaki." She nodded to the purple-haired girl who froze in her steps.

"Ah hey there Tsunade-sama." The nervous Anko scratched her head sheepishly as she entered the soothing waters. "This is my friend Kurenai." The raven beauty gave a shy wave to the Senju.

"No need to be shy girls, we are all naked in here." The Senju let out a long sigh as she dropped the face towel over her eyes. "Although even I can tell Kurenai has a killer figure." She lazily pointed a finger in their general direction causing the woman in question to gasp, the blonde responded by laughing loudly disturbing another patron.

"Tsunade, it is not wise to have fun at other people's expense, maybe that is why you are so unlucky."

"Ma ma Naruto, it is a day to relax, just go back to whatever you were doing."

"I was reminiscing about that time you got the Hokage to bail you out of jail, I would have never thought a Senju could look so happy to see a Uchiha." She heard his small laugh and scrunched the washcloth up removing it from her face, only to see a relatively pink duo sitting in the water.

"I take it you both know Naruto then?" Slow nods were her response. "How do you know him?"

Anko's hand shot up signalling she would answer the question. "I am like his little sister. Kurenai here is a possible future lov-" A hand was promptly shut over Anko's mouth while the girl who was just spoken about was trying to impersonate a tomato.

"You will have to forgive her Tsunade-sama, it seems that she must have had too much to drink this morning." Anko bit into the hand that covered her mouth, this action elicited a yelp from Kurenai.

"Soo, little Kurenai has a thing for Naruto eh?" Anko nodded proudly while Kurenai let out a little 'eep' and covered her face. "Hey Naruto?" Her face was no longer covered, she was now giving a mortified look to the Senju in the bath.

"Yes Tsunade?" His ever calm voice came through the wall.

"I ran into this girl this morning, I think her name was Kurene?" She held her fingers up in the 'shh' symbol telling the girls to be quiet.

"Do you mean Kurenai?"

"Maybe, can you describe her for me? I was thinking about taking her on as an apprentice."

"She has a curvy figure, almost like a dancer, black hair that comes down past the small of her back, and ruby-red eyes. Also that idea may have to wait, I am training her for the jounin exams."

Tsunade rose a brow at the genjutsu user who slowly sunk into the water. "Yeah that's her alright, have you seen the looks she gets?" Naruto smirked with his face towel still covering his eyes.

"Yeah, got into a fight because of her two months or so back. I think I still owe her a drink anyhow." Kurenai frowned as the words left his mouth, Tsunade just gave a small snicker.

"So where is she staying, so I can talk to her about some training?"

"With me at the moment, her house is undergoing repairs, or so Anko says."

"You mean that two bedroom house in 44?"

"Yeah... what's wrong with my house?" The confusion was evident in his voice.

"It's just that on the way back to the village, I was speaking with Anko, she said Iruka normally stayed the night at hers, so where does Kurenai sleep?" The smirk that had been tugging at his lips deepened.

"I try to give her as much room as possible, but normally she insists that I sleep in my bed with her." Tsunade rose a brow to the woman in question who managed to blush an even deeper shade of red, their attention was quickly drawn by a spike of chakra on the other side of the wall.

"Sorry to cut this short, but I have been called by the Hokage, I will catch up with you later, also please try to remember I have sensor capabilities girls." Tsunade started laughing again as Naruto left, quickly donning his armour and moving through the village.

"You knew the entire time didn't you Tsunade-sama?" Questioned the purplette in the bath, Tsunade now had an incredibly innocent look on her face.

* * *

Neko dropped down next to Naruto as he entered the tower, quickly dusting herself off and clearing her throat. "Yes Neko?"

"I just wanted to make sure you were ok, Naruto-sama." He gave a soft smile.

"I am fine Neko, you should resume your duties otherwise Hokage-sama may have to punish you." She shook her head with vigor.

"I have been tasked with following you around and recording the methods you use to teach the jounin, I am currently fulfilling my duties." Naruto rose a brow, giving a small shrug of his shoulders.

"Fine but get into civilian clothes, I don't want people getting the wrong idea, me being escorted around by Anbu all the time, it might freak them out you know?" Yugao nodded and vanished, Naruto just gave a small sigh and continued through the halls, quickly making his way to the top, the Anbu each bowing to him as he entered his father's office.

"Sometimes I wonder who they would listen to if it came down to it?" Minato mused out loud, causing the now re-hidden shadows to tremble.

"I taught them to listen to you, that is if the commander is not present, seeing how they still act this way, I shall assume that spot is still empty?" Minato nodded and pulled out a file handing it across to Naruto, he gazed down at it, quickly looking it over before looking back at his father.

"When I open this, I am not going to find what I did last time will I?" He opened the file without waiting for an answer, frowning as he read along it. "I can't, not now that people know who I was, it goes against Anbu code."

Minato stood from behind his desk, pulling out a second file and slapping it down. "Clan Heads cannot be in Anbu, you have to choose, one or the other. In both positions you will be helping the village in ways only you can."

"If I decline both?" Minato froze and looked at his son. "Sasuke is next inline for the Uchiha Head, I am now out in the open, people will start to figure out who I was in Anbu. That means I am not eligible for either. Plus they are both optional positions." The facts were all laid out in front of the blonde Kage.

"Then you will take on a genin team?" The room grew a few degrees colder as Naruto looked up at his father.

"This... this is what you were pushing for?" Naruto's hands crushed the edge of Minato's desk as the two looked at each other. "I am not good with kids, I produce people who will kill without a second thought, do you want me to turn your daughter into the same monster I am?" Black eyebrows were twitching in anger, this suggestion was absurd.

"Naruto, the village made you into what you are, I am trying to bring you back to being my son." Naruto stood up and turned away from his father, his hand stopping on the handle to leave.

"With all do respect Hokage-sama, I have to decline those positions, none of them are well suited for me, I will be off training if I am needed." The door was pushed open and Naruto took a single step outside.

"NARUTO." He paused and turned his head to the side, his golden eyes meeting his father's blue. "You still need to decide Kushina's punishment..." Naruto looked back out the door and frowned, it was hidden from the others.

"I already have, when the both of us have free time, get us together. Is there anything else?" When he didn't here anything from his father he stepped from the room closing the door behind him.

* * *

Kurenai had enjoyed the remainder of her time in the hot springs, she relaxed and pushed away all the thoughts that were running through her head. "Hey Kure-chan, let's head home?" And then they all came rushing back, the fact that Naruto knew they were there is what bothered her the most, how had they forgotten that little fact that he was always able to tell where they were without looking?

"I will be out soon Anko." The purplette shrugged her shoulders as she jumped out, moving into the changing rooms, leaving Tsunade and Kurenai in the springs.

"Naruto, he more than likely does not know and will not know how you feel about him, not until you just confess to him. You need to remember he was kept away from the rest of your, he doesn't understand relationships." The Senju spoke softly as she moved past Kurenai and got out, leaving her to dwell on her thoughts for a few moments, before the crimson-eyed woman climbed out and made her way to the rooms.

It did not take her long to change and start heading back to training ground 44, they made their way to the house rather quickly opening the door to find it empty again, like it had been the past few days. Kurenai moved to the bench and found a note on top of a book for her.

_'Kurenai, I saw you taking an interest in this and a few others, I have laid the others out on the bed for you, I do not know how long I will be away, train hard until I get back ok?'_

It was short but it still made her feel a little better that he hadn't forgotten about her training, she heard screaming and found a petrified Anko, pinned to the wall by Kunai, one landing next to her head with a note.

_'Anko, you need to work on improving your infiltration methods, thus I rigged a trap up to your end of the house, it will change every day, train hard and enjoy.'_

"That sadistic bastard." Anko turned her head and saw the book in her friends hand. " He leant you 'Bad Blood' eh? Its a good book, his family was a little strange though, makes you wonder what would have become of him, had they still been alive ya know?" Anko took the book from her for a moment, flipping through some pages and finally coming to the one she was looking for. "He always told me to not try these without asking him first, I guess the same rule would be given to you, interesting as hell though." Kurenai knew this page well.

_'It was a parting gift, in exchange I got to look over this book again.' _His words ran through her head. "Tier 3 Manipulation." Skimming through the text she found something that stood out.

"Golden Eyes of the Thunder God. A byproduct from obtaining Tier 3 in lightning manipulation. In order to reach this stage, like the other stages, you must become one with the element, each asks you to go to extreme life-endangering lengths, lightning is no different, you are to become one with the storm and attract its power into your body. Golden Eyes of the Thunder God, it is still in question as to what they are capable of, or whether it is just a change in appearance. Rumours state, that eyesight is better during a storm, but alas nothing can be proven." She pulled the book away from her for the moment. "Naruto has golden eyes..."

Was it just chance, or did he follow what the book said? "Uchiha's are meant to have a fire affinity." She mused, flicking through the pages, stopping at the one with the red embroiled boarder. Her fingers ran the boarder, feeling the heat that came form it.

"Stomach of the Dragon. A byproduct from obtaining the legendary Tier 3 in fire manipulation. Simply, your body becomes more adaptable to the flames, they now become a source of power sustenance and pleasure." She blushed a little at the thought. "It seems his clan really are a bunch of hotheads." A small chuckle escaped her lips. "Ingesting fire, this is the only way to start the mutation, it forces your body to adapt to the needed levels so you can preform Katon Jutsu of the highest level, sign your name below so we can keep track of the Uchiha's likely hood to reach this stage."

Uchiha Madara.

Uchiha Izuna.

Uchiha Izanami.

Uchiha Naruto.

The names, she had heard about Izuna being Madara's brother and Naruto being his grandson, but where did Izanami fit into this. "Izanami." She heard some shuffling from Anko's room as the purple-haired girl made her way out, scratching the back of her head.

"Uchiha Izanami?" Kurenai looked up in question, giving a slow nod. "Thats the name of Naruto's mum, he is rather touchy about that subject, so be careful with using that name. You should put that book down for now, reading it for long periods of time, its not good for us, without the Sharingan we only get half the information, meaning we start thinking with only half the information." Anko sighed as she stretched out, peering over Kurenai's shoulder, she rested a finger on the top of the page, a small amount of chakra flowing from it an arange the words in a different order.

"See, you only get half the information, this helps give a little more, Naruto says that there is about five or six pages worth of content on each page, layered upon each other with genjutsu and fuinjutsu, his grandfather was a genuis, a madman but a genuis." She chimed walking back into the kitchen. Kurenai looked over the now changed page, seeing a list of jutsu, ways to improve your control and even change its flight path once it has left your mouth.

* * *

"Naruto-sama, must you always hide away on this day?" He paused in his step, the onyx tiles beneath him cooling his feet. He slowly turned to face his companion.

"Yugao, you know I dislike the idea, plus being here, allows me to go through grandfather and mothers books." He stepped towards her, his body coming within inches of her own as she closed her eyes. "Here, you could still brush up on some Kenjutsu while I am reading." A book was dropped into her hands, looking to her left she saw it was taken from right next to her head.

"Hai, Naruto-sama." Naruto was currently in a pair of black robes, a deep red edging lay on the cuffs while the Uchiha fan was fixed on the back, his footfalls were silent, showing his years of training as he stalked through the library, looking for something to fixate himself with. The book she held contained advanced Kenjutsu katas, sadly she did not feel in the mood to train, looking across to her idol and former partner, it looked like he was content with saturating himself in this melancholy.

Naruto pulled out a leather-bound book, he played with the spine, looking lazily around the room, his eyes narrowed at a small disturbance. "Tai-long, for today, could you please just leave me alone. I am not in the mood to argue with you." The sounds of padded paws hitting the ground from next to him caused Naruto to frown.

"I am only here to provide company, just like _him._" He closed his eyes and sighed.

**"_He is right Kit."_**

* * *

Minato sighed as he entered his home, his feet dragging along the ground as he walked through the dimly lit halls, it was bright up ahead, he knew he was coming to the kitchen, however it was a sight he hadn't expected to see, little Natsumi was working behind the marble bench, the oven was currently on and baking. "Natsumi-chan, I told you we should just leave him be tonight." The blonde in question stood up and glared at her father.

"It isn't right, he should be treated like everybody else." With a pout on her face she crossed her arms across her chest. Minato walked towards her making her stiffen, he rested a gentle hand on top of her head.

"I have made mistakes, that is something I won't deny, but Naruto is adamant on spending this night alone. Plus I don't even know where he is." Minato moved back, taking his hand from her head and moving to the hallway again.

"Tou-san, it's not right, you shouldn't be alone on your birthday." Minato froze in his steps, turning his head back to face his daughter.

"How did you find out?"

"I looked at your calendar, you keep all the important dates there." She was proud for figuring it out and turned around taking the contents from the over. "Sooo, I made a cake, Kaa-san wouldn't help me so I don't know how good it is, but I tried my hardest, I just want him to know that he doesn't have to be alone anymore." A small smile came to the fathers face, letting his eyes close and think on the present.

"If you try the old Uchiha mansion, you might have some luck, he hides out there from time to time. I didn't tell you though.. ok?" He didn't even need to look to know Natsumi was beaming a smile at him right now. "Don't ask him too many questions if you do run into him though." Minato made his way from the room, it must be hard for his son, sharing the day of your birth with the end of your clan.

* * *

Yugao was wondering around the house, Naruto had locked himself away in the study, leaving her on the other side of the lock, now she had nothing to do really. Scuffing her feet along the ties, her arms tight behind her back, she made her way to the front door, hearing the sound of someone striking against it.

Swinging the large cathedral-like doors open she gasped. "Natsumi-chan... why are those two with you?" She held back the urge to scowl.

"I wanted to see Naruto-nii and I found these two sitting in a bar, so I asked them if they wanted to come along." She tilted her head to the side in a cute way, Yugao now fighting the urge to run forward and hug her, leaned against the large doors.

"You can come in, I doubt he will see you though, he locked everyone out of the study about an hour ago." Yugao motioned for Natsumi to come in, shutting the door on the others.

"Neko-chan, do you really dislike them that much?" Yugao looked as innocent as ever.

"Call me Yugao-chan, don't use my Anbu name when I am without a mask. Also I have no idea what you are talking about." Her toes were pointed to the ground swiveling back and forth, Natsumi let out a groan as she tried to open the doors.

Having put the cake down on the ground she put her whole weight into prying them open, "Heavy~"

"Natsumi-chan, do they really need to come in?" After getting the needed nod from the blonde, Yugao moved forward and swiped her hands along the handles, infusing them with chakra, this swung the doors open again. "Get in, you can thank Natsumi-chan." The blonde scratched the back of her head and gave a large smile, bending down to pick up the cake she missed the glare that the girls gave one another.

"Take your pettiness elsewhere. I am in no mood to put up with them, let alone will I let you bother Naruto with your issues."

"I couldn't have said it better myself Leo, I take it your clan has become interested as well then?" Two felines moved from the shadows standing proud in front of the humans. Tai-long of the tigers and the jet black Leo of the Lions.

The glow of his red eyes bathing the halls in an eerie red hue. "The clans have started to move, theAvialae clade has left him to wallow, saying he would only tarnish their already shaky name. It seems hardly anyone wishes to place their faith in a Uchiha." The large lion spared the occupants in the room a glance, it was all he needed, deeming them unworthy. "He has isolated himself now, correct?" Tai-Long gave a small nod to the lion as he walked forward. "Come we have much to discuss, also ningens, if you get in my way, I will crush you."

The two felines walked down the halls leaving the group of girls in a flabbergasted like state. "T-t-that was Leo, boss of the Lion summons, head of the Felidae." Running her hands through a string of jutsu, she slammed them against the ground, a small puff of smoke coming up.

"Mistress Yugao, how may I be of service?" An elegant voice broke through the smoke as it slowly dissipated, revealing a dark blue housecat.

"Sasha-chan, do you know why Leo is here?" The cat rose a brow as it smelled the air, cats had a fairly decent sense of smell, not on the level of a dogs, but it was still enough if someone had been through here in the past few hours.

"Hehe, Leo-sama is looking for the first Felidae summoner, we managed to nib Uchiha Naruto away from the other clans on poker night, so to stop arguing amongst the Felidae Leo-sama decided he would test Uchiha Naruto's worth for himself." Sasha had her right paw raised in the air as she spoke, her eyes closed tight and a small smile on her face. The girls went to move forward but Sasha appeared in front of them, blocking the stairs.

"Bad idea, Leo-sama will be down with his answer soo-" She was cut off as the house started to shake, Yugao, Anko and Kurenai fixing themselves to the ground with chakra, Natsumi was sadly unable to do so. It was not much longer before they were able to feel the heat flowing from the staircase. A few moments later, a large torrent of flames tore through the house, bounding around a black figure as it slowly moved forward.

"I like him, Little Sasha, Tai-long, it will not be long before you bow to him too. Get used to the sight of his feet." The black lion snorted as he walked past, vanishing into black flames. The flames from the stairs licking the hair of Tai-long as he marked where they would stop.

"If you truly care about him, do not go up those steps, he is not in the right mind at the moment." Before he even got the chance to finish his sentence they had already moved past them, he didn't even bat an eyelid, already knowing how the ningen would react, they were predictable.

The group was frozen staring in awe at what they were seeing. "It wasn't like this when I left." Rods of lightening sprung to the ceiling, their feet were covered in soot while red eyes loomed around them.

**"Leave!" **His voice boomed through the halls, nearly knocking them from their feet, the air was dry, making it hard to breath. A hand covered in lightning burst through the door, shattering it apart and sending splinters forwards, they burned to ash before hitting the group in front of him.

His eyes glowed red, now glad in a samurai style of pants, bandages covering the lower half of his torso, his hair had turned to flames that moved on their own while lightning coursed around bare and toned body. **"Please leave." **He sounded almost desperate, it did not last long as soft steps entered their ears.

"That form is not ugly Naruto, it lets your elements run free, for all to see. Be proud to have the three most offensive types of element affinity." Tai's ever calm voice broke across the halls.

**"It shows what I was made for, I leave ash and soot in my wake, as the gods themselves try to strike me down. Is this how a human should feel? That he is just a weapon to be pointed at the enemy."** He clenched his fists and the lightning increased its effect tearing the ground apart.

"N-Naruto-kun..." Kurenai too a step forward, feeling the heat of the flames against her outstretched arm, the lightning stinging as it struck her skin. "You aren't a monster, you're Naruto, our friend, brother and mentor." Natsumi took a step forward showing the cake to her older brother, it was a western style recipe that she had found buried away, it was called a mud cake? She thought that the name was strange, but when she had mixed its contents together she saw where its name came from.

"Naruto-nii, I don't want you to be a stranger anymore. I want you to be the older brother you were meant to be, to help me with being a ninja and to talk to me when I am lonely, I want you to be my Onii-san." With a bright smile on her face she struggled forward through the heat, Naruto's eyes started to soften as she moved forward. Pausing as the others strode next to her.

"Heh, we need you back Onii-chan, the village is sooo boring without you, plus who is going to teach me to be a super kick ass jounin if it ain't you?" His spiky little sister spoke causing his eyes to weaken.

Long purple hair flowed behind her as she came to a stop. "Without you Naruto-sama, who will keep the Recruits inline when they mess up? Better yet, who will stop all the bar fights just by looking?" Try as hard as she could, the words she wanted to say would not come out of her mouth.

His frame became looser and his shoulders slouched forward, taking an easy step forward his lips, something warm pressed up against them. A hand cupping his cheek, the warmth slowly left and he let his eyes open, taking in the crimson eyes that were looking at him. "I want to get to know you better Naruto-kun, I know you are a good person, you just need to start showing us the you that wants to be shown." She shone him a true smile as the flames started to turn back into his black hair, the lightning no longer stung against her skin.

His heavy hand nervously coming up and wrapping around her lithe form. "T-thank you Kurenai, thank you everyone. I won't let you down." Looking around the room at the girls, he noticed the cake in Natsumi's hands. "Natsumi... is that a Mud Cake?" The blondes eyes widened a little at having it recognized so quickly.

"Don't be so shocked Natsumi-chan, Naruto-sama did a handful of missions in the western lands, made a quite the name for himself while he was there, it is also over there that he got his sweet tooth eh Ripper Jack?" His eyebrows twitched, it was not one of his better jobs.

"You mean Jack the Ripper?" The one in the trenchcoat asked.

"Hai, that was I, such a pesky man my employer was, but a job is a job. It would bring shame to the village if I didn't go through with it." His head dropped a little and he felt the arms around him tighten, as something pressed into his chest.

"How did we go from talking about cake to work?" He could feel the vibrations her words made echo through his chest. It was strange, she was so close now but he didn't feel the need to act against it.

"Ningens, all you lot ever do is work." Naruto let a smile tug at his lips.

"Lets forget about this, there is cake." That was the commander she knew and adored.

"Happy Birthday Naruto-nii." The raven-haired male rose a brow at her while the others gasped, not having known today was that day.

"Well, I guess it is, thank you Natsumi." He closed his eyes as he smiled wide. The excitable blond pulled a candle from one of the many holders along the wall, it was a surprise that they had been left unscathed, holding it above the cake and giving her older brother a smile when he looked at her confused.

"Your meant to blow it out and make a wish silly." The fact that he had to be told what it was for, managed to make the others in the room frown. Kurenai moved from his arms, standing off to the side as Naruto moved forward and blew the candle out.

_'I, I wish to be seen as a human.' _

* * *

Days passed by quickly for the group, Naruto had been supervising the training Anko and Kurenai were going through, at the same time he was giving Sasuke smaller exercises, to help him be able to build himself as a better person. Those things were unimportant now, he was in the middle of a large room, standing behind a bench, not to far to his left stood Kushina, in the very same position as he. "I assume you have come to your decision Naruto-san?"

Hyuuga Hiashi, head of the Hyuuga clan, a royal pain when you were in his bad books. Sadly for the majority of the people in the room, Naruto had been his personal guard for some time. Inuzuka Tsume, primal was the only way Naruto could describe her, she had a tendency to run off of her baser instincts, it was also something that got her into a lot of trouble, shinobi needed to think with a clear mind at all times.

Nara Shikaku, lazy genius, that was all that really needed to be said about the man, his friends Yamanaka Inoichi, head of T.I, an incredibly cunning man when he needed to be, and Akimichi Choza, the human tank, each of them had an heir in Natsumi's class, he was interested to see what the new generation of Ino-Shika-Cho would be capable of. The head of the Uzumaki clan stood next to him, she did not need to be explained, nor did the head of the Senju, one Senju Tsunade.

Sarutobi Asuma sat quivering in his seat, looking between the powerhouses in the room, he felt out of place, most would think that he was too young to step up to the plate, it was ironic that they thought along that line while trying to push Naruto to fill the sparse Uchiha spot. The Aburame clan lead by Shibi, Naruto had met the man once or twice, they sat on mutual ground, neither fans of one another nor were they enemies.

His father filled two roles, he acted as both Namikaze clan head and the Hokage, his vote was counted twice, the civilians were left out of this gathering, it would be too troublesome to have them involved if you asked a certain clan head. The elders... Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu and Shimura Danzo, The first two did not see eye to eye with the raven-haired Uchiha, Danzo on the other hand, seemed to always smile a little when Naruto was around.

"I have honorable council members, I will not ask anything extensive, I merely wish to show her what she did to me, by having her watch my memories." The council blinked at his response.

"You can be much harsher Naruto-san, you do understand that don't you?" He tilted his head to the side, Tsume, such a pain at times, always wanting to go flat out.

"Yes I know, I could always rob my sister of her mother, but I shall not, that is a pain I do not wish on her, plus my head is not a pretty place, Yamanaka Inoichi can testify to that." Naruto motioned to the blonde man who gulped.

"It is true, all Anbu are required to be scanned quarterly so they can be assessed whether they are still fit for duty or not, we ended up stopping this method with the Executor's, Naruto broke them time and time again until they became exactly what their name suggests. But as we can see, they are still able to move around and live their everyday life outside of Anbu, I lost more than a few clan members to the Asylum dew to those scans, never once did we have to pull an Executor though." The blonde sat down and nodded, he almost pitied Kushina, he had seen some of the things Naruto had done, afterwards he was reunited with his breakfast.

Minato crossed his hands in front of his face, peering down at his wife and son, both not moving an inch while they waited. "Do you have anything to say for yourself Uzumaki Kushina?"

The redhead took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. Slowly opening them and looking around the room. "I did what I had to, to protect my daughter and my husband, would you not do the same in my position?" The clan heads frowned and Tsunade's fingers clenched around the edge of the desk, nearly snapping it off. When none of the clan heads responded she hung her head.

"You need to stop living in the past Kushina, otherwise we will just continue this circle of hatred, both of our clans now lay in ruins, yet you still wish to continue fighting. I see no reason to that, my vision has always been clouded by darkness, so I learnt to close my eyes, to listen instead of see, in a way, you made me what I am today." His voice was calm as he moved to stand in front of her, looking over to his father and getting the nod that he needed to go ahead. "This is what you caused.." He closed his eyes, moving the hair away from his left eye, showing its now clear skin and a spinning black fuma shuriken on a red background. **"****Tsukuyomi." **

* * *

A red moon, its light was reflected in the sky giving an eerie and clouded feeling about the place she was in looking around she noticed her body was bound on a cross, standing in front of her was Naruto, a katana in his hand, he stepped forward and she struggled in her binds. "Sorry about that, its the default settings of this jutsu, mainly it is used for torture, I mainly use it to transfer large amounts of information in just moments. Let me just cut you down?"

She looked at him with narrowed eyes, struggling a little more, it seems she would have to let him, these bindings would not move. With a small flick of his wrists she fell down into his outstretched arm, quickly pushing herself away in disgust. Naruto frowned, it would seem her hatred ran much, much deeper than he had originally thought. "Can we just get this done, I don't want to be any closer to you than I have to be."

The katana vanished from his hands and he brushed the hair out of his left eye. "In here, I will show you different events that your seal has caused, for the next four days, you will be traveling along with me, as we exit and enter each event. You will have time to get used to me."

* * *

A few moments passed on the outside and Naruto took a step back, wiping the blood away from his eye, he slowly stood back to his full height and let out a sigh, it seemed that was all he needed to do as Kushina fell to the ground in a quivering heap. "Now you know what you have done."

"Gomen, gomen, gomen." She repeated into the ground, it seemed to become something of a mantra to her, as she was still repeating it minutes later, when Naruto and kyuubi had finished repairing the damages the jutsu had caused.

Naruto shook his head looking at his step mother. "It wasn't that bad, also you should apologise to them, not me." The council looked hard at him for a few minutes and he shrugged his shoulders.

"She experienced the pain I felt when I had to fight against the seal, along with the memories, seeing the sleeping faces as i fought so I didn't bring harm to them. Kushina, stop, stand up you are a clan head, you punishment is dealt, now once you apologise to them, I will forgive you, but now you are being pitiful, don't set a bad example for Natsumi to follow, be strong." Naruto moved forward and picked her up by the back of her kimono, lifting her to her feet, and letting go gently, leaving his hands there to steady her if she fell again.

"H-hai Naruto." Her words coming out staggered as she continued to attempt to catch her breath. The council seemingly shocked at how quickly she changed her view on the boy before them.

"She just spent four days, going through some of the tammer things her seal did to me, I had to help carry her around after the second day. It is somewhat natural that there would be some kind of bonding." Four days alone with one person as you sifted through their memories, they could understand the connection you would feel. "Am I needed for anything else, or may I take my leave?" The council gave him their best wishes, he moved to the door and stopped at the sound of Kushina's voice.

"Naruto, I truly am sorry, I thought it was for the best." He rose a brow and turned to face her.

"Like I said Kushina, do not apologise to me, its the others that need it." The door opened and closed in one motion, Naruto vanishing along with it, Tsunade cleared her throat and looked around at the other members of the council.

"You know that if it was anyone other than Naruto, they would have asked for your head right?" Kushina nodded at the words from the Senju. "As long as you know that he has more of a heart than most, it saddens me that people only see him as a weapon." Minato nodded as he looked over the council.

"He has requested to have a few months of leave after the jounin examinations. Does anyone see any issues with this?" A few of the members stood.

"Will he not be taking the team with Uchiha Sasuke on it?" Minato gulped down the rising bile in his throat, it was an argument he had many, many times with his son.

"He has made it clear, he will not take the seat on the council or be taking a team, he has stated that he will help train any genin team if he is free." There was some murmuring around the council before they gave a collected nod.

"We see no issue, has he given a reason?"

"He says he wants to finish some training of his in the land of Iron."

* * *

"Too slow." Naruto chimed dodging the strikes from both Kurenai and Anko, with his katana still in its sheath he slapped both of them on the backs of the legs sending them to the ground. His eyes were closed and he rested his weight on his blade. "I am only moving at high jounin speeds, plus I am fighting blind, you need to move faster and remove the emotion from your strikes."

They both struggled to stand, swaying a little in their stances. "Hai Naruto-kun/ Onii-chan." He frowned at Anko causing her to chuckle.

"Gaki, I am going to look forward to hitting you again." He muttered pushing himself back onto his feet. Holding his covered blade in reverse. "Now come, you only need to land a hit." He gave a small bow, listening to the movement of their feet, quickly jumping back and dispelling the genjutsu that was cast. He frowned as the scent of poison hit his nose, turning his head to the source and hearing a hiss. "Using your snakes so early Anko? You should have kept them hidden from your opponent until you could no longer afford to."

With grace only heard of in fairy tales he struck each snake that came out of her sleeves on top of its head causing them to hiss and dispel. He shuffled back an inch as kunai struck the ground he had just been standing on. "Kurenai, you should have predicted the movement and set a second trap." He her the sound of metal piercing the air and smiled. "I stand corrected, the delay was a little too long though." Bringing his blade out of its case he cut through the kunai coming for his back, causing the girls to gasp as the were perfectly in half, the resounding click, telling them it was back where it belonged and already in its reverse grip again.

The air around him became hotter and he knew it was not him. **"****Katon: Encampment Wall.****" **His flames quickly swallowing the ones that had been sent towards him, he could hear the ragged breaths of his students and smiled. "You are doing well, keep it up." It was not a taunt, he was being honest with them, it was something they had learnt how to tell the difference with.

Anko took a deep breath and steadied herself, bringing a kunai up in front of her chest, leaning it off to the side. "I have had enough holding back." Her exclimation caused Naruto to raise a bow, waving his hand at her to say 'come on'.

Anko dashed forward Kurenai moving in behind her, stringing together signs, Naruto felt the invasion of foreign chakra and quickly purged it, not moving, letting her think she was successful. Anko was smirking as she closed the distance on Naruto, his visage blurred before her and she felt a dull pain strike the back of her leg, taking her to the ground, Kurenai stiffened as Naruto appeared in front of her, his katana held to the side, walking forward, his eyes still closed, he paused less than an inch away from her mouth, a small tap struck the side of her leg.

"Too slow Kurenai." The slight roll of his tongue on her name, caused her form to quiver, the mix of mint and chocolate clung to his breath, belladonna, everything about him lead her back to this thought. A quick spin of his feet and he strode back to the middle of the clearing. "That is enough for the day, I have an appointment to keep." His crimson eyes slowly opening and taking in the flustered look on genjutsu user's face. "Are you ok Kurenai?"

While the concern in his voice was touching, she could not find the words to respond, nodding dumbly to give her answer. "I will see you later tonight?" She stiffened and looked at him nervously.

"Actually, the repairs are done, I will be moving back into my house tonight." He rose a brow and looked to her in question.

"Understandable, I will also be moving, the Uchiha mansion needs to be maintained, plus the village is pushing me to claim it as my own." He groaned out. "The house in the Forest of Death, is to become part of the training ground." Kurenai felt a shiver run down her back, it was a scary thought, turning that area into a part of the training ground. "I will see you when I see you then, you will know where to find me."

Tai-long stepped out of a strange portal next to Naruto, giving the man a nod before they both vanished into a plume of black flames. "No matter how many times I see that, it still looks bad ass." Kurenai could only agree with the view of her purple haired friend.

* * *

"What are we doing here Naruto-san?" Sasuke's question was not out of place, as they pair passed through large metal doors that ached under their own weight. They were greeted by a group of Anbu that quickly lead them through the main halls.

Sasuke could feel his very life being drained as they moved through this place. "I am getting rid of something that could cause you to die in the field." The smaller Uchiha rose a brow and looked at Naruto, said man did not even take a pause as he continued moving, they walked in relative silence, one that was only broken by the soft footfalls of Sasuke.

This continued for a few minutes before Naruto and the Anbu paused in front of a large metal door, a square of bars around the 5 foot mark, allowing you to see what was inside the room. Naruto turned to the small child and handed him a kunai, it was slightly longer than the average one, but it still felt familiar in Sasuke's under trained hands. "In you go, only one of you can leave." Sasuke rose a brow but nodded none the less, slowly walking into the room once it was opened.

The door snapped shut behind him and the rattling of chains filled the air, "They say, if I kill you, I can go free." His voice was dry, and his figure was weak, Sasuke gulped, steadying his kunai and flipping it into a reverse grip.

"I will not become some ticket to freedom." It finally clicked to him, he was in a prison, he didn't understand why though. The man slowly walked forward showing his scar riddled body and the stitches that ran across his eye.

"Remember, the winner walks free." Naruto called from behind the door, letting his golden eyes open, allowing him to see the movements of their chakra, it was times like these that his cursed eyes came in handy. A small fire raged inside Sasuke causing Naruto to smirk, watching the Uchiha roll to the side as the sounds of chains hitting the ground rung through the air.

Sasuke panicked, he now understood what he was meant to do, as the chain collided with the ground he slammed his foot down, it showed him just how weak the man in front of him was, Sasuke was by no means a bulky twelve-year-old, he was slim. So it almost shocked him that the man was unable to pull the chain from beneath his feet, the before him held the same shocked look, it was now thanks to Naruto's training that he recovered first, rolling across the ground again, during the roll he snaked the released shackles of the man around his arm and yanked forward, pulling the person off balance, two cuts, one on the thigh a second across the calf muscle.

The man staggered forward bellowing out a roar of pain, fire burning in his eyes as his senses dimmed from a rush of adrenaline. Sweat ran down the young Uchiha's face, he was in no way tired physically, but this small tussle was proving that he was not ready for a life and death situation. He could feel his heart pounding in his ears, irritation ate at the backs of his eyes, he dared not look away nor try to fix it, his entire focus was on his foe in front of him.

Thats when it happened, the man's dark brown hair, it seemed to slow to a snail's pace, he saw the man's arm come around for a hay-maker, Sasuke's nimble body was able to respond, pushing the arm further and causing the man to overextend, with deft movements the kunai was thrusted into the ribs of the prisoner, his tattered clothes now stained red as he dropped to his knees. "T-trust a-a Uchiha t-to fight d-dirty." The man got out as his eyes drifted shut, falling forward with a loud crack.

Sasuke stood still, the kunai rolling out of his hand and clanging against the cold cobble ground. He faintly recognised that the doors was opened and the man was dragged from the room. "The first kill is the hardest, I am going to say you unlocking the first level of the sharingan was not exactly planned, but there was a high chance of it happening."

"W-why?" Naruto rose a brow at the now shaking boy, he signalled for the Anbu to leave them.

"You ask why... look at you now, would you be able to fight in your condition?" Sasuke shook his head weakly, his body still in shock from what had happened moments earlier. "Remember what I said to you earlier." Naruto drawled out, seeing the slight look of realisation come over the childs face.

"I am getting rid of something that could cause you to die in the field." He muttered out, looking down at his blood covered hands.

"This is why I did it, killing, it is not easy to take a life, it is best to learn how to detach yourself from emotion, I will not lie to you and say that it gets easier, you still feel the guilt each time. You will have to learn whether you could live this kind of life though, can you see yourself killing again Sasuke?" The child looked up to Naruto, from their positions now it felt like he was speaking to Kami. Naruto seemed so strong and wise, it was refreshing though, times like this showed Sasuke, that no matter how strong someone seemed, they were still human deep down.

"I-I don't know, can I have time to think?" Naruto nodded and made the kunai on the floor vanish into a pile of ash, signalling it was from his special set, along with his bow and sword.

"You have until the graduation exams, I can still continue training you if you want though?" He got a weak nod as his response.

"I would rather the training over winding up in hospital from a civilian brawl." Sasuke got a small chuckle out at the end of his words and steadied himself. His head still hung a little lower than it had earlier in the day, Naruto seeing this placed a hand on his back and gave a warm smile.

"The fact that you regret the action, shows you are more of a man than most, how about we get you something to eat and I explain the Sharingan in more detail to you?" Naruto voice had some soothing affect on the younger Uchiha as he brought his head up a little more.

"Sounds good, just wait one moment please." Naruto rose a brow as Sasuke moved away from him, standing in the corner for a moment before becoming acquainted with his lunch.

"I had the same reaction as you after my first kill." A head of black hair raised from the corner, his hands still firmly pressed against the wall for support.

"That makes me feel a little better."

"I was five." Naruto taunted seeing the scowl on Sasuke's face, it made it all worth it.

"I take back what I said." Naruto let out a small laugh as he placed a hand on Sasuke's back and shunshined them back to the Uchiha mansion, they were standing in the middle of the black floors, the stones on the walls keeping the inside cooler than needed, it was a good thing that he had aa high fire affinity to keep his body warm. "Is this?" Sasuke's question was left to hang in the air as Naruto moved around the room, a white tiger trailing behind him.

"Yes this is the Uchiha Mansion, it is also known as my home as of tonight. Lets get you washed up, wouldn't want to stink out the restaurant that we go to." A soft knock bounced off of the cold walls, Naruto let out a sigh as he made his way to the door.

"Tai-long, can you show Sasuke to bathroom?" He could have sworn that the tiger snickered before motioning with his head for Sasuke to follow, sadly he had not finished going up the staircase when Naruto opened the door.

"WHAT IS HE DOING HERE!" Naruto's face was unaffected as he picked at his ear, with a lazy look at Natsumi she quickly apologised and started speaking on a quieter level. "Why is Sasuke here?"

"You ask me why, Uchiha Sasuke, is in the Uchiha mansion with myself, Uchiha Naruto... do you see a pattern here Natsumi-chan?" The blonde tapped her finger on her chin for a few moments, suddenly it clicked, Naruto could have sworn he heard something ding inside her head.

"So he is like family right?" Naruto's head rolled from side to side.

"Kind of, I just finished training him for the day, we were about to go out for dinner if you want to come?" She looked over what she was wearing and how Naruto was dressed, giving a small nod. "Ok, let us wait for Sasuke then, it is a rather big day for him." He saw the confusion on her face and gave a small chuckle. "You would not understand, lets just say, today he finally opened his eyes."

* * *

**PA: No Anbu years this week, I have been busy working on the teaser chapters for the poll fics, speaking of which if you haven't already leave a vote on the profile poll for the next story, NarutoxYugao, the rest of the teasers should be out by the end of the week. I wish you all a Merry X-mass or Happy Holiday if you don't like the other term:D See ya cowboys... or girls.**


	6. Chapter 6

**PA: Heya all its good to see you again, this chapter took a little longer than normal to get out, my fault I really wanted to finish watching Fairy Tail though. Pretty good anime, now I just need to finish reading Bleach manga along with Fairy Tail's and I should be good if they win the pole.**

**Kyo: Yeah Yugao does, there will be a few people who end up in the same boat as her, it will lead to some cat fights (please hold off cheering for the moment) that will be done in rather 'strange' circumstances. Also... who wouldn't want a three-way with them? hehe**

**ncpfan: Kushina is a really hard character for me to write for this story, I honestly love her in cannon so doing this is hard but I feel it will make for a better kind of situation between their crazy family. A lot of her reasons behind thinking what she did was right will be revealed via Natsumi, thats really the only hint I will give out about that. A productive relationship... will be built, but like all decent relationships, it will take time.**

**Cerulean Knight: Some pretty interesting ideas, I may have to have a bit of a play around with them. In regards to Naruto in his room, nope, it has something to do with the Felidae. The Felidae is the cat line of summoning contracts, meaning he will not be limited to lions, tigers, or even household cats.**

**Disclaimer****: I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

A towel was wrapped around her frame, another busy drying her hair, Naruto's training had become even harder. A small blush crept over her face remembering the time they spared on top of the lake, the water dripping down his topless form, his muscles rippling when he moved, it was rather distracting. A small giggle slipped from her mouth, she tossed the towel she had dried her hair with into the laundry basket.

Putting some water on the stove to boil and have a simple meal. Her long wavy black hair flowing down her back. Her crimson eyes looking around the room, she dropped the towel around her body to the ground, quickly slipping into pajamas, using the chakra string exercise Naruto taught her to place it with the other.

Her dinner was simple, fried rice with pork. A long sigh escaped her lips as she lay down for bed, when her head hit the pillow she noticed that something felt... off. Looking around the room there wasn't anything different, then again the lights were off, it was like that thought was spoken out loud, a red hue lit up the room, her head slowly turning to face it before everything went black.

* * *

A groan came from her form as her eyes slowly opened, a large pain was in her back, looking around she stiffened, finding herself laying on a tree branch 30 feet in the air, in her night-clothes. Only when she stiffened did she notice the sharp pain in her leg, looking down at it she was surprised to see a kunai sticking out of the limb. Applying chakra to her back to hold her in place, she yanked the kunai out, cutting away part of her top, leaving her now exposed midriff open to assault by the forests breeze.

Looking around she couldn't find any landmarks that she knew, with a pained groan she rolled over onto her stomach and slowly crawled down the tree. She had no idea where she was, or if she was still in danger, it would be best to not waste anymore chakra than she head too.

Reaching the bottom of the tree Kurenai let out a sigh, looking up to where she had been she gave a nervous chuckle. "I guess its a good thing I don't stir too much in my sleep." She stated dryly.

A small lip was present in her step as she tried to find her way through the forest. A low rumbling setting her on edge. The bushes to her right started to rustle, it was not long after that that a black wolf walked out and snarled at her, baring its fangs and leaping forward, dragging her injured leg with her Kurenai dodged the first pounce and left a nice gash on the wolf's side.

A large howl erupted from the beast and she suddenly found herself cornered, looking around she had no way to escape, using Naruto's recent teachings she ducked and weaved the attacks from the pack, while stringing a long strand of hang signs together one-handed, her other was busy slashing at the wolves when they got too close.

The pack started to cringe and whimper, letting her know that the jutsu had taken effect. A simple demonic viewing technique. She frowned, it was almost too easy, looking at the pack again she saw the dispel into smoke. "Shit!" She hissed, hobbling away further into the forest, she was being hunted. She could feel eyes boring into the back of her head, looking around whoever it was could definitely hide.

A prickling sensation was present in her neck, spinning on her feet she brought the kunai in a downward slash. "Oi Kure-chan, that could have hurt someone." A familiar voice taunted as it slipped away from the blade. Her purple hair was not in its regular pineapple style, it was down past her shoulders and loose.

"Anko, you really should be more careful, I could have killed you." The snake mistress gave a small chuckle.

"Hardly, the strike seemed to move in slow motion, I am starting to wonder if you were actually training with Naruto, or just ogling him." The raven-haired beauty had the decency to blush at the accusation.

"It was a bit of both. But right now we need to get out of here. Got any ideas?" Anko shook her head, spinning a kunai in her hands, she was clad in short shorts that barely covered her privates, looking to be more like underwear than anything else, her rather sizeable bust was held from view by a tight muscle top that threatened to burst apart.

Kurenai was not faring much better, now in a pink makeshift crop top, with black shorts coming to mid thigh length. "I don't recognise anything around here, plus we are indoors, that sky above us is a rotating roof." Kurenai rose a brow in surprise at the purplettes statement. A snake slowly slithering out of Anko's bust and gently sprawling itself out across her shoulders. "My summons don't detect any heat coming from the 'sun'."

Kurenai nodded her head, a small frown on her face. _'Am I the only one that doesn't have summons?' _"So what do you suggest?" Anko had a mock look of surprise on her face.

"But Kure-chan, I thought you were the senior chunin here. Shouldn't you know what to do?" The purplette taunted, Kurenai just shook her head at the antics of her friend. "Naruto put me through something like this once, in the forest of death. Had me fight off an army of spiders while trying to find him." She paced a few steps forward and a smile gently spread across her face.

"You clever bastard." Kurenai looked at Anko in question. "Think about today's date, doesn't something feel off?"

Kurenai mauled the thought over in her head for a while, in the end she pulled up nothing. Anko chuckled at her clueless friend. "He has hit me with the genjutsu so often that I can now detect the block, he uses it to block things from my mind that could harm me. Seeing as it is the same blocked feeling that his jutsu leaves, I am going to say this is an examination of sorts... more specifically the jounin exams." Kurenai gasped in surprise. Anko stopped spinning the kunai and tightened her grip.

"Now that we know, he isn't going to hold any punches, be ready Kure-chan." Raising a brow in question she felt the burning in the back of her head again, the small rustle in the shrubs behind her, out walked eights tigers, all the size of Tai-Long, hunger in their eyes. "Like I said, the test just got harder."

* * *

"Isn't this a little extreme?" The voice belonged to one Senju Tsunade, she stood with a small amount of worry looking at the screens before her, Naruto turned and gave a raised brow.

"If they can not complete these trails, they are not worthy of being jounin in my books, plus the Anbu know this is merely a joke compared to what they went through." Looking around the room she was greeted by stiff nods from the corners.

"Naruto-senpai is right, they all woke up pleasantly, I remember my exam, I got woken up by a wolf eating my broken leg, not to mention we were not given weapons to aid ourselves, plus we spent a week in there. Knowing Naruto-senpai he will let them out after the day is done, I just wonder who he put in there with them." The statement got confused looks from the other jounin and clan heads that were in the room.

"He is talking about my obsession with making those being examined, the hunted. He is trying to figure out who the hunter is." Those in the room looked eagerly at Naruto for a few moments.

"It is clear who the hunter is, you are just not looking right." Minato was the first to catch on, quickly dispelling the genjutsu that was on him.

"Not bad Neko-chan, it seems your time with Naruto really payed off." A small giggle erupted from her frame.

"Hai, I learned many things while under his tutelage, not to mention learning even more when I shadowed him before these exams." Raising her hand into the air she broke the genjutsu in the room, displaying what the screens really showed, Kurenai, Anko, Hana and many others walking around in a bare room.

"B-but what about the forest?" Kakashi had to stop the laugh that was shaking his body.

"It is real... in their minds at least. Naruto's genjutsu is on a whole other level to what you have seen before. In fact, I doubt that calling it genjutsu is doing his art justice, the ability to completely alter the memories of another, to adjust their senses to what he wants them to feel, see and hear... it is hard to describe, but it is almost like he takes your life, into his hands and makes you a puppet." Yugao explained simply for those in the room.

The large metal shutter in front of them dropping down, showing Naruto sitting in the middle of the examination room, on top of a large thin pillar, his legs crossed over, eyes closed and hands held in the ram position. The genjutsu flickered over the monitors again, giving them a display between reality and illusion.

The jounin hopefuls were running around the room, dodging nothing and striking at air. 12 in total danced around to the tune of Naruto's instrument of destruction, Kami's voice.

Hiashi's veins bulged around his eyes, he flinched and deactivated his eyes when he looked to the centre pillar. "His chakra output is ridiculous, its like looking at the sun." Yugao nodded darkly.

"Hai, that pillar is made from his own chakra, he is absorbing it and using it to maintain the genjutsu, when it reaches the floor he will have an hour or so left. That in itself should be a testament to the power he holds." Tsume scoffed at the Anbu's words, causing all those that knew her to groan.

"Its a genjutsu, thats nothing that impressive." The pillar in the centre of the room dropped down a metre, all those in the room turned to face Tsume, the clan heads, Anbu and jounin all drawing a kunai and moving into striking range.

"Do you have a technique that is able to change the outcome of so many lives at once... Inuzuka Tsume." All the voices chanted at once, causing her to quiver on the spot, like it started, it stopped just as suddenly, those still holding their Kunai out at the clan head chuckling sheepishly.

"Like it or not Inuzuka-san, your life is in his hand right now, as is all of ours."Minato's cold voice cut through the room, reverberating the thought deep into her mind.

"A clan that relies so heavily on its taijutsu could never understand art, even when it is displayed right before their eyes. No offence Hyuga, but I know your eyes are more open than most, even if your clan is full of prudent judgmental fiends that don't deserve the time of day required to bring them into the world." Tai-Long the ever present companion of Naruto spoke from his position on the floor.

"Its good to see you again Tai." Yugao called from her seat, spinning on it and facing the white tiger. "When did you come in?"

"When you were caught in the unimpressive genjutsu." He turned his head to Tsume for a moment, the sound of a scoff came from his throat. "Honestly though, I had nothing better to do today, so I came here, thought I might talk to Neko for a bit, maybe the blonde one and stuff. But instead I got stuck with the insufferable words of a hound's keeper. Oh how joyful my day has been thus far." The large tiger rested his head on its paws, looking completely unfazed by what was going on around him.

* * *

Her back was pressed flush against a tree, her brown eyes locked onto the red in front of her. "Shhh, they'll hear us." The hushed voice was that of a male. His raven hair was thrown all over the place, his clothes consisted of tracksuit pants and bandages around his waist. His eyes slowly changed to gold, the pattern of a shuriken present in them.

His rough hand was clamped over her mouth, as he leaned against her, holding them to the tree. "You're not going to scream if I let go correct?" She nodded into his hand with widened eyes, he took a slow step away letting his hand fall back to his side.

"My name is Inuzuka Hana, I have heard so much about you. It's an honor to meet you Uchiha Naruto." He rose a brow to the girl.

"There is no honor in meeting me, I take it you were abducted too then?" A hesitant nod was given from the girl. "We should look at getting out of this forest than. I can see no good coming from us staying here." It was at this moment that Hana noticed she was barely wearing what one could consider clothing, her sleepwear was very similar to Anko's, it was at this point that Naruto had to wonder, do all kunoichi dress so poorly for bed?

"What are your combat abilities like Hana?" His voice had remained quite the entire time while his eyes darted around the landscape. Flashing between their golden colour and red, trying to find anything that may stand out.

"Like all Inuzuka I am a good tracker, my taijutsu is said to be a low jounin level and I have decent medical skills, mostly focusing around animals but I can patch up a broken bone or two. In other words I prefer close quarters" Naruto nodded and stretched his right hand behind his back, bringing out a long black katana.

"Can you use a blade?" He asked with a raised brow, receiving a nod from the girl he pulled a tanto from a seal on his back and passed it over to the chunin. She took it muttering a small thanks before pulling up her top, keeping the twins in place.

"How come you still have weapons?" The thought took much longer than it should to make it through her head. Naruto waved her over and motioned to his katana, the blade vanishing and reappearing in his hand like nothing happened.

"Seals and chakra manipulation, without the proper knowledge seals can pass through many methods of detection, thus making them the best way to store hidden weapons." She gave a small nod, trusting his word, he was the Anbu commander after all. Taking a step forward she placed a hand on his bare chest, her deep red nails contrasting with his tanned skin.

"You'll help me get out of here right Naruto-san?" The innocent look in her eyes, caused the genjutsu Naruto to blush, this may have been because it was the reaction that she wanted though, it was something that Naruto would not reveal.

"I'll try my best Hana-san, I doubt we will be stuck in here for long." A warm smile spread across his face as he rested a hand on her head. Tsume who was watching the cameras narrowed her eyes, a soft voice slowly entering the room.

"This genjutsu can only work off of what they want or desire, I just have the ability to twist it slightly. I need not be accused of something I haven't done." Yugao shook her head from the seat while Tai-Long, seemed to be doing what he did best, laying down and tuning everyone out, attempting to fall asleep.

"Naruto, you are going to freak them out if you keep doing that." Her voice seemed to bounce off of the walls for a few moments before vanishing completely.

"I proved earlier you are inside my genjutsu, I can hear your thoughts, your voices and even the the impulses your muscles send to your brain. Is it really that surprising that I can project my voice into the room you are residing in?" Soft and questioning, it was strange to think that they were so vulnerable to this man right now.

* * *

Anko let out a small whimper of pain, clutching her right shoulder tight. It was not too long ago that she had to pull a knife from it, since then wolves had been chasing her down, biting at her heels. Currently she sat in a tall tree, looking down at the circling predators. Her snakes had proven to be next to useless in this forest.

She had thought about using her fire style jutsu, but they would give away her position, plus she didn't know how long she could be stuck here. Looking around from her vantage point, she couldn't see any end to the strange forest. A blur of black knocked her against the tree, clamping a hand over her mouth.

"Anko-chan, they got you too?" Her hushed voice seemed to give the needed message to the purplette. The hand slowly moving away as Kurenai leaned back on the large branch, blowing some hair out of her eyes.

"Hai, I guess. I woke up on the ground, a pack of wolves circling me. Probably in my top ten of worst ways to start my day." A small chuckle was given for her own joke. Kurenai rose a brow at her friend for a few moments.

"I really don't want to know what is the worst way you have started the day... do I?"

"Not at all." Anko's smile was bright, but like that her demeanor changed completely. With a swift movement she plunged the kunai in her hand into Kurenai. "Almost Naruto, seems I know Kurenai better than you think I do." She smirked proudly looking up to the sky.

Pressure applied around her ankles causing her to freeze, her red eyed friend, now looking up at her, tears running down her face. "Why Anko?" The purplette shook her head looking at Kurenai, laughing to herself.

"Its not going to work Naruto, I know how the genjutsu works." She roared out loud, the sound of someone landing on the tree made her turn.

"Why would I waste chakra when I don't know where I am?" Anko looked down at her blood covered hands, her vision slowly shifting to where Kurenai was laying, blood pouring out of her chest. "He- what the hell happened?" Having finally taken in the situation around him, Naruto dropped down to Kurenai's side and tried healing the wound.

Anko crawled away from the two, staring at her downed form in shock while Naruto tried to fix the damage that was done. Slowly shaking his head as he looked to Anko, his hands still glowing green and pouring chakra into the dying body. "Anko, I can keep her alive but I can't save her, not here, not under these circumstances. I am fighting against infection while trying to make her blood produce faster, purging it from her system and accelerating the healing factor of her tissue. There are just too many factors working against me." A lone tear slide down his cheek, his head going back down to look at Kurenai, focusing all of his attention on her for the moment.

"I-its m-my fault... I-I-I killed her, I actually killed h-her." Slowly she crawled back hovering over the form of Kurenai, her crimson eyes looking up meeting Anko's hazel. "K-kure-chan, I-I didn't know." Sniffling was more than audible.

Kurenai slowly rose a hand up to Anko's face, cupping her cheek and smiling weakly. "Anko the choice is yours, I can make this painless for her, or I can keep her around for some time longer." Anko stiffened, looking between the two.

Slowly shaking her head as tears connected at her chin. "I don't want you to suffer any more ok Kure-chan? We are going to put you to sleep for a while. Don't worry we will still be here when you wake up." A large smile on her face as she looked down at her friend.

"You always were a bad liar Anko, *cough* live life to the fullest ok?" Anko nodded furiously to Kurenai, sparing Naruto a single glance. Telling him all he needed to know. His hands flashed orange for a moment, Kurenai's eyes closing in response a small smile still present on her face.

"I know this is a bad time ANko, but we need to figure out how to get way from here." Nodding stiffly she bit on her lip.

"Umm, we need water firstly, I will go look for that, Naruto will you be able to find me again if I leave you to burn Kurenai and find some food? I would stay but, I don't think I would be able to continue afterwards." Naruto nodded understanding her situation.

"You Pass."

* * *

You Pass, those words rang through her head, never relenting, only she didn't know what she passed, she slowly started to stir, finding herself in a room she hadn't ever seen before, surrounded by people walking around in a trance like state. How did she get here, what had happened, what did she pass?

Looking around, she knew everyone here, she let out a gasp. "The jounin exams." Some of the people started to collapse, foam oozing from their mouths while others seemed to be waking up. Looking to the centre of the room, Naruto was sitting there, calmly on the ground, his body unmoving, his eyes closed tight.

Kurenai was hunched over and breathing heavily, she could vividly remember herself and Anko staring down Naruto, their bodies broken and defeated, his scowl turning to a smile and telling them they passed. But now, stuck in this strange room, so this is where her test really was? "Kure-chan you ok?" The purplette called, the tone of worry lining her voice.

Kurenai looked surprised at her friend who looked like she had just woken up for the day. "You should know, you were just with me?" The purplette rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, her 'assets' bouncing in the process.

"I uh, don't know what's going on. I just remember 'You Pass'." The room around them was cleaned off the others, leaving Hana, Anko, Kurenai and Naruto. The raven-haired male let out a small groan and stood from his position, stretching his body and cracking his stiff neck.

"Thats because you passed the four levels Nee-chan, Hana-san passed two same as Kurenai." A look of shock came over Anko her head turning to the two girls behind her who scouted a little further from the girl.

That exam was killer, to find they only passed two stages, while Anko had doubled them, it didn't exactly look good. "Kurenai-san, Hana-san, report to the Hokage tower in an hour, you will be briefed on what a promotion entails. Congratulations, I look forward to working with you both." The two gave a bow.

"Hai Naruto-san." And quickly shuffled out of the room, apparently forgetting that they were still in their sleepwear. The screaming came a few moments later, it brought a smile to his face.

"Nee-chan, you exceeded what I expected of you, thus you have a choice, but before that, will you follow me, the clan heads will want to speak to you?" A small nod of her head was given, Naruto looked at her shivering form and frowned, taking his cloak off and wrapping it around her, ruffling her hair for good measure.

"Ta Onii-chan."

"Gaki."

* * *

Mentioned clan heads scrutinised over Anko, the jounin and Anbu were just watching the scene before them, while Yugao, Naruto, Minato and Tai were all off to the side talking. The four cleared their throats, this small action caused any conversation in the room to die.

Naruto taking a small step forward, drawing all eyes to him. "Like I said, you passed all four stages of the exam, thus your mind was blocked from the memory. What I am extending to you, is a one time offer, to join the Executor forces." The sound of a book hitting the floor was heard, followed by the faint sound of a cigarette. He didn't even need to look around to see Kakashi and Asuma were standing there wide-eyed.

"W-whats an Executor?" She stuttered out, having all of these important people staring at her made her feel, uncomfortable, really uncomfortable.

"A special Anbu force. They made regular Anbu look like children. No offense Boar and Lion." There was a small shake of their heads.

"You trained the Executors to be the best, that is what they became." Naruto gave a small nod, his hand extending out to the side, a delicate gloved hand falling into it, a woman clad in a black robe walked out of thin air, a large scythe strapped on her back, a white shinigami mask covering her face.

"This Anko-san is Shinigami, leader of the second Executor squad, before I ask you to make your choice, Executors have a minimum requirement of five years before you can leave. One of those is purely for training." The purplette nodded and took a small step toward Naruto and Shinigami. She looked around the room, seeing the neutral faces, slowly resting her hand in Naruto's free one.

He gave a small nod and spared a glance around the room, finally resting his eyes on Shinigami. "Take her to the barracks, I will see her off before I leave." Shinigami nodded and put her hands on Anko's shoulders, both of their forms flickering for a moment before vanishing. "If you will excuse me, I promised a little girl I would teach her a jutsu." He gave his father a smile while Minato chuckled.

"I wouldn't want to keep you, plus Neko already gave me some notes from the exam. I completely agree, that forest was trying to both their physical and emotional sides. They are all worthy of the promotion's handed to them." Naruto's smile grew even wider still.

"You get the good job of handing them their vests. Anyway, I guess I will see you all later, I will look at leaving tonight." Kakashi and Asuma seemed to be the only ones confused by the conversation, the clan heads already knowing his plans just nodded and gave their farewell.

* * *

Natsumi looked down at the scroll in her hands, it was complicated, seeing the confused look on her face Naruto gave a small laugh. "Its a high level jutsu for a reason Natsumi-chan." The blonde looked up at Naruto, he could see the look she was trying to hide.

"Why do you have to go? I only just found out about you, we have only just started to spend time together, now you are leaving? Its not fair!" Her little rant was cut short as two fingers met the centre of her forehead, Naruto's smiling face was in line with her eyes.

"The world we live in is not fair, it was my choice to take this training trip, that way I could get closer to finishing one of my skill sets, to be able to protect those that I care about, when things become unfair. So don't frown be happy, while it may seem sad right now, I will be back in a few months, also I prepared this." He spoke pulling a scroll from one of his pockets and placing it in her hands with the other.

"What is it?" The blonde haired, blue-eyed child ask, looking up at the Uchiha as he raised himself back to his full height.

"It is incase I don't make it back in time, a shadow clone of myself. It can watch your graduation alongside mother and father, I will see it all as if I was there myself when it dispels. So no matter what, I expect a picture and a hug when you graduate ok?" Natsumi sniffled a little before looking into Naruto's eyes, giving him a big nod along with a thumbs up.

"Hai, Onii-chan." He roughed her hair a little and started moving away towards the door.

Oh, Kurenai got promoted today, you should go see her some time." His voice carried through the hall clearly, his hand resting on the doorknob to leave.

"What about Anko-chan?"

"She is a special case, you will have to talk to father about that ok?"

"Hai Onii-chan." He turned his head back and looked at Natsumi over his shoulder, a proud smirk on his face.

"Hey gaki, study hard, live life to the fullest and be good for your parents while I am gone, ok?" He saw her nod with vigor as he opened the door, the gentle wind from outside whipping his hair in all directions, strangely enough it never covered his right eye, meaning it was always in view of Natsumi. "I will see you soon."

The sound of the door closing was pretty hard for Natsumi to take, she had found out about her brother a few months ago, since then she had seen him at least twice a week, trying to get to know him more, now though, he would be gone for months. Looking at the first scroll he gave her she narrowed her eyes. "I will have it mastered by the time you get back Onii-chan." She proclaimed, Naruto who was still within hearing range let a large smile stretch across his face.

"I am sure you will Natsumi-chan."

* * *

Anko was panting heavily, glaring up at the two that were standing before her. "How is this not affecting you?" Naruto turned with a raised brow while Shinigami just looked in her direction.

"Simple Anko, we got used to living in heightened gravity, meaning that when we go outside we can move even faster. Over the next month you are not allowed to leave the barracks, during this time, your body will completely adapt to the higher gravity and your muscles will become much denser than they were before, and no before you ask, this will not make your figure go all manly and scare away 'the boyz'." Anko struggled to even move her head to respond, the slight nod that she gave nearly exhausted her.

"Now, do you want the memory of what happened during the genjutsu back? I will warn you, you may hate me after you get it back." Anko's eyes went wide with those words, seeing the sad look on Naruto's own face.

"I-I couldn't hate you Naruto. I would like to know what happened though." Naruto walked forward and pressed his hand against her head, a small green pulse flew from his hand and moved over Anko's body, effectively removing the block. Her eyes widened before narrowing again, a lone tear slipping from her right, closing them for a few seconds she leveled out her breathing. "I-its definitely hard to come to terms with, I am a little angry, but I don't hate you, it was a genjutsu and I can see that it affected you too. My only question is why?" Naruto cleared his throat he was about to speak when the gloved hand of Shinigami gently tapped his chest, she pointed at her wrist letting him know he was running out of time.

"I have to go Anko-chan, you take care while I am gone ok? Also Shinigami will show you the ropes as well as explain what I was going to." As if he was called, Tai-long appeared next to Naruto, consuming them both in black flames, leaving not even a trace that they were ever there.

"What Naruto-sama was going to say was, as an Executor you need to be able to continue the mission, even if your teammates should perish, we are not trying to turn you against them, or even telling you to not care for them. But we know that death just happens, sometimes its on our side, at other times the enemies. Now little Anko-chan, I am going to take you to your room, there you will rest for the night, in the morning we will start with some light exercises to get you more used to the gravity change here." The purplette didn't even have the chance to respond as the girl, smaller than herself lifted her over her robed shoulder, not even bothered at all by the weight of Anko.

* * *

Naruto and Tai-Long were setting a slow pace, strolling through the dimly lit streets, he had already signed out of the village, he could see the large gates in front of him, signalling the end of the village, a form leaned from the gates slowly walking to the middle of them.

Naruto paused his red eyes opening and looking across at the figure. "I thought you would be out celebrating." The figures dark hair was dimly lit as it walked forward, its hips swaying, its hands ran down its sides, smoothing out its outfit.

"I heard you were leaving, I wanted to see you off." Naruto nodded and looked to the large tiger beside him, getting the message Tai vanished from the area. He slowly strode towards the figure savouring the calmness of the night.

"You did good today Kurenai, keep up the good work and that genin team will be yours in no time." Walking forward again she slowly wrapped her arms around his chest, his chin leaning on top of her head while his arms draped over her shoulders.

"Naruto?" The hesitance was clear in her voice.

"Hnn?" Her ear was pressed against his chest, she heard the sound reverberate through his body, a small smile coming to her face.

"C-can we stay like this for a little bit?"

"Just a moment, I will have to leave soon." Her body stiffened, his arms holding her a little tighter.

"Do you have to?" It was the same question Natsumi asked, only why did it seem so much harder to answer?

"Hai, I need to become stronger." He felt her hold tighten even further, now regretting his choice of not wearing his armour. His black robes did little to protect him from her almost viselike grip.

"No, your already strong, stay here where we need you, where I need you." Her voice was riddled with emotions.

"Kurenai." His voice was calm, like normal, something he could thank his mother for, having heard it was a trait of the Uchiha.

"Ha-" She was cut off, his hand having moved from over her shoulders to the side of her face, he leant down and pulled her towards him, capturing her lips, he himself was shocked by what he had just done, acting on his feelings was not something he was used to.

Kurenai was at a loss for words, the feel of his dry lips against hers, her eyes closing as she leaned into the kiss, not wanting it to end. Sadly it was not to be, Naruto broke away and frowned confusing her. "Sorry I acted without thinking." A smile spread wide across her face, going back to leaning on his chest and holding tight.

"I think you should do it more often, Naruto-kun." He could feel her nuzzling into his robes, it was strange how such a thing could warm him so much.

"Since when did I deserve a -kun added to my name?" His eyes looked down at her, noticing the red tint across her cheeks, almost as deep as her eyes.

"Since now, I guess I shouldn't keep you any longer. Just remember, I am here waiting so you better come back safe, ok?" She let go and took a step away, looking at his face, marveling in his appearance.

"Thank you Kurenai-chan, I will come back soon."

"I guess this is goodbye than?"

"Not goodbye, that implies we won't see each other again. More of a see you later." She had to hold back a small giggle at his reasoning, watching as he slowly walked away into the night.

"I will see you later Naruto-kun." She whispered to herself, her fingers trailing the lips he had claimed. "I'll grow strong while you are gone as well."

* * *

**Anbu Years **

Naruto looked down at the form before him, a small twitch at the corner of his mouth. "Get up Weasel, this is no time to be taking a break." Harsh and clear cutting, his voice held no tone of remorse. This was the voice of Oni, leader of the Executors and Itachi's veteran partner.

"H-hai Oni-taichou." The raven haired child got out as he struggled to his feet, swaying a little trying to stand still.

"If you haven't noticed, the Executor barracks has much denser gravity then the rest of the village. This is where the next step of your training will begin Weasel." The child nodded and Naruto moved forward, grabbing the boy by his outfit and dragging him through the halls. "You were simply taking too long, I do not want you to waste my time Weasel."

"Hai Oni-taichou." His voice sounded dry and choked as he was dragged by the armour on his back.

His body was dropped onto a bed where Oni started removing his tattered robes, letting them fall to the ground below him, his mask being placed off to the side showing his red eyes glaring down at the young Uchiha. With a flick of his wrist Naruto closed the door behind them, locking it tight. "Can you imagine my surprise when I was told my junior would be Uchiha Itachi?"

"I can not Oni-taichou!" The boy called, trying to be as stiff as possible.

"Enough Itachi, when we are behind closed doors, you will call me Naruto... understood?"

"Hai Naruto-taichou." The grandson of Madara shook his head, this boy was going to cause him a lot of pain.

Months passed quickly for young Itachi, while Naruto was correct and the boy had become a headache for him, Naruto made sure the boys body ached in return. He didn't hold back much, and he certainly drilled him like there was no tomorrow, constantly repeating the same few moves, time and time again. Itachi stood there with a standard katana, it was his signature weapon, a little bland but it fit the boy well, Naruto on the other hand held a blade almost as long as he was tall.

"Sakura no Suraisaa (Cherry Slicer) got her name from its smithy, it is a blade that is rumoured to be able to cut through anything, this was started when a single leaf from the Sakura tree fell on top of its blade, slicing itself in half, thus its name." Naruto spoke with a small amount of pride in his voice, holding his blade which had a slight red and pink tint in its metal.

Itachi shifted his stance, bringing his Katana up in front of his body defensively. "Make your move Weasel, do not make the Oni chase his prey." Itachi gulped down swallowing any nervousness he had been holding onto and dashing forward, flicking his blade forward and sending a small wind scythe ahead of him, a hand jutsu Naruto had taught him.

Yes taught, he did not sit down and let Itachi copy jutsu, he made the boy work for each and every one, making him learn to appreciate the art. Naruto brought Sakura up and shifted her forward, splitting the scythe in half, tearing up the floor either side of him, his eyes narrowing on Itachi.

He just knew the boy had his sharingan on, meaning this fight would be interesting, Naruto shifted his stance, bringing his left leg back and drawing Sakura along the length of his body, clutching her hilt tightly before swinging in a wide arc. **"Katon: Creeping Flame Wall." **As its name suggested Naruto's jutsu was a large wall of flames, slowly moving across the arena scorching the ground below them.

The flame wall hit the other side of the arena dispelling against the wall, Naruto looked around for a moment, his eyes narrowing on a piece of floor. "That wasn't hot enough to not leave a body Weasel."

Itachi's tattered cloak slowly came out of the ground, covering his Anbu armour. His Weasel mask firmly in place. "Fighting against someone who has complete control over your natural element, I don't believe you have ever been in my position Oni-taichou?" Naruto smirked under his mask and swung Sakura wide, a string of lightning flicking from the end, acting like a whip and carving a deep trench in the ground.

Itachi gasped at what his eyes were seeing. "A lightning whip, extending from a sword holding onto a wind blade... your control was at this level?" Naruto smirked beneath his mask lashing out with Sakura tearing the ground apart, Itachi's blade caught fire, his sharingan able to see the wind blade made it easier for him to dodge, not by much, the speed at which it was being thrown was on a whole nother level to what Naruto had been using earlier.  


"Weasel, you are getting slower, move those feet boy." The man clad with an Oni masked taunted, his robes flickering with his movements, at times showing the bulky armour beneath them. You could see the metal hitting against itself, yet no sound escaped from Naruto, the silencing seals making sure of that.

Itachi's eyes quickly zipped around taking in Naruto's blade, its striking distance and the speed at which he was swinging it, when he started sending it to the ground again, the younger Uchiha tightened his grip running along the lightning whip, his flame sword blocking it from numbing his body.

Naruto's eyes narrowed at what Itachi was trying to do, when the boy was close enough, Naruto spun on the spot, sending out a quick and striking Itachi with the whip, disrupting Itachi's senses. "We have the same eyes boy, a plan like that would never work."

He heard Itachi chuckling, looking down at the boy he had wire held tight in his hands. Running his eyes along it he saw it end around his feet. Naruto gave a quick snort and expelled lightning from his body, showing extreme levels of chakra control. The blue-white bolts zipping along the metal wire, shocking the poor boy into the ground. "Not bad boy, get cleaned up and rest, we have a mission tomorrow."

He received a groan from the prone Uchiha causing him to chuckle. "I don't think I heard you right Weasel."

"Hai Oni-taichou." His raspy voice threatening to break under the strain.

* * *

**PA: That ending, I am trying to see where it sits and it feels kinda in the middle, its not overly happy and not overly sad, what do you guys think? Also lets try to reach 111 reviews before my next chapter, would be pretty epic. Also a little heads up Anbu Years will start to tie into the story soon, it will no longer just be little snippets of what has happened previously, you may already by able to tell of some upcoming interactions by looking through the past segments.**

**Well I guess that is all for now, Until next time everyone. :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**PA: Hey all, I'm back again, this would have been up earlier but my internet provider had some issues with data flow across the state. Omakes will not be happening at the moment, this is because of the section that is being added to the chapters called Project One, it will make more sense when you get to it. Also thanks for hitting the 111 mark guys:D**

**I am actually really glad that I haven't heard anything bad back about the Genjutsu exam, I was thinking it would be the best way for Naruto to hold it, seeing as he could run a full exam in less time than it actually required. But I wasn't sure if other people would enjoy it as much. Also a certain someone is introduced in this chapter, this person's mannerisms have been 'tweaked' just a tad, it will be pretty easy to spot who, I think anyway. Let me know what you think**

**Mejciu: Cannon events start to happen in this chapter, Naruto may or may not learn all of Madara's signature katon jutsus, but he will learn Great Annihilation, that won't be until later on. EMS is something I have thought about a lot, I am still unsure of whether he will need it or not.  
**

**Guest: Some of the villains will be receiving an 'upgrade'. I'll be the first to admit that this Naruto is very strong, thats why there are certain things I am still umming and ahhing over, I don't want it to be a 'godlike' fic, I had one of those, I got very bored of writing it.**

**Cerulean Knight: The feline contract, is going to be something I play around with a bit, some mythical felines will be involved along with some fantasy ones, not all otherwise it would be a bit of overkill. There will be times when his contract gets him in trouble, maybe a cheeky cat or two coming out at the wrong time, or things like that.**

**One last thing before the disclaimer, I have had a change of heart, the poll closes on the 28th of Jan, the winners will have their second, maybe even third chapter uploaded then.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

Naruto was clad in samurai style pants Sakura held tightly in his hands as the snow fell around him. The snow around him kicked up into the air, blocking his vision, his red eyes unable to see through the powder mist, on instinct he brought Sakura up and parried a strike of to his right, bringing his leg up and kneeing a man in the gut, pivoting on his feet and crouching down, dodging the strike that was intended for his head.

Striking the mans chest with the blunt of his sword, his right foot gliding across the ground lifting more snow into the air, holding his blade behind his back blocking another slash, shifting his feet and sliding to his left, striking out with a strong right leg, doubling over his assailant. Closing his eyes he breathed out heavily, unable to see the mist he breath caused.

The past six months had left him training in kenjutsu, his master was relentless, ready kill you if you slowed him down. That was life here though, it was a place where he could thrive, currently he was pitted against a squad of four men, personally selected by the Lord of the area.

This session had left him lusting for more, they had proven to be of little challenge. He needed bigger prey, he needed to become the predator he once was. His trainer had even commented that he had grown weak. The men around him started to move again, Naruto, no longer caring for their health made four quick slashes, dropping the group to the ground. Watching their blood stain the once white landscape.

A string of claps was heard to his right, his trainer walking into view. "You are almost ready, I must ask though, why did you kill them?" Miyamoto Musashi, this was Naruto's legendary trainer, the man had a metal eyepatch over his left eye, with small bells filtered through his hair. He wore white samurai style clothing, two swords firmly secured on the side of his left hip.

"They couldn't even force me to use my left hand, you would have surely killed them yourself, all that changed was the blade the ended them." Naruto sheathed Sakura on his hip, the sound of her falling into place again, it was almost like music to his ears.

"Is your blade still healthy?" It was the same question that Musashi always asked him.

Without even thinking he replied the same as always, "The only unhealthy thing is her lust for combat." Like always his teacher smirked, moving behind Naruto and putting a hand on his back.

"I think we are done here, I really have nothing left to teach you Naruto, the only way for you to improve is to regain what you once were, and practice. Sakura should already be like an extension of your arm, what you need is for your body to accept her fully."

Raising a brow in confusion Naruto looked to his master, the man smiling spinning his blades along his arm's, shifting through stances at speed's Naruto could only dream of. His body moving in time with the spin of the blades, the razor-sharp metal coming closer than you could believe to the man. "When you reach this level with Sakura then you shall be ready to face me in combat. I don't want to kill such a promising student to early."

Naruto nodded at his masters explanation, waiting for the command to move again, once he received it the pair moved quickly through the snow, reaching the lord's manor in minutes. "Pack your things Naruto, you are leaving tonight."

"Hai Master. I wouldn't want to burden you any longer than what was needed." Naruto gave a deep bow and moved to his guest room, his black samurai style pants were drenched at the bottom, leaving a cold chill on his feet. His feet if it wasn't for Kurama, would probably have frostbite. Fighting in the snow barefoot, had been part of his training, he was not too surprised to find that it was always snowing in the land of Iron.

With his bags now packed, Naruto was clad in black hooded robes, Sakura resting on his shoulder, he made his way through the house. Musashi standing at the door to see him off. "If you ever get tired of that Shinobi stuff, you can always come fight for me." The large smile on the mans face was nearly too much.

"I will remember that, people need me there at the moment though. So I will have to respectfully decline your offer for the time being Musashi-sama." Naruto gave a small bow to the legendary samurai who nodded his head.

"Don't forget to tell that pretty girl of yours I said hello." Giving Naruto a sly wink before he kicked him out and closed the door.

The taunting, it was something new to him. It had started two months in to his training, one of Kurenai and her team; Sasuke, Natsumi and Sakura. He found it kind of funny that the child had the same name as his blade, Musashi did to, saying it was a sign she would be deadly one day, Naruto had laughed it off saying the blonde was the one to watch out for, after finding out it was Naruto's little sister he had to agree.

He had received the memories from the shadow clone and even wrote a note to Natsumi, along with sending a special set of kunai to her, as a graduation present. He felt it was going to be strange going back to Konoha, seeing everyone again after so long.

He had gotten an abusive letter from Anko two months ago, cursing his very existence for putting her into the program, well that was the first few lines anyway, needless to say Naruto now had a few new insults he could use. The rest of it went on to talk about how she was making friends and actually enjoying herself. He felt a bit sorry when he heard Iruka broke up with her, saying he couldn't deal with the hours she worked.

The man needed to grow up, he was a shinobi. The hours they work are always changing, not everyone can be satisfied working in a classroom all day. It would drive Naruto up the wall, but he knew the kids would come out much stronger than anything Iruka could produce.

"Tai-Long, its been some time my friend." Naruto didn't even pause in his step, still walking down the snowy trail. The large tiger coming into play next to him.

"That it has, there were people that would be after my fur, I decided it was best for myself to just lay low, now that your training is back, I can take you back to Konoha if you want." The tiger rolled its shoulders as it walked, seeming to stretch itself out, just a little further, with each step.

"That would be best. I have already missed too much." Like that he was consumed in black flames, quickly arriving at the main gates of Konoha. "Instant travel, it really is handy isn't it Tai?"

He didn't get a response as the tiger faded away into the shadows, he would see him soon enough anyway. Naruto quietly walked to the stand at the front gate, the faces were people he didn't know, nor did he really care to find out about. "Show a form of Identification and state your business in Konoha." One of the chunin commanded.

Naruto fought the urge to snort at the fact they thought they could order him around. he shrugged off his sleeve and showed his commander tattoo. "Our apologies Naruto-sama, please go right ahead."

Naruto dipped his head as he walked past, heading straight for his father's office, the sun setting around him. With a cigarette hanging out of the corner of his mouth Naruto walked through the Hokage tower, his hood still drawn, the secretary trying to stop him from walking straight into his father's office, hearing yelling inside he paid no heed, barging straight in and pointing his blade at his father. "And you're dead. You have let things get lax while I was gone father." Drawing his hood back he let his onyx hair fall down his back, opening his burning red eyes.

"I am sorry for the Disturbance Terumi-san, Naruto, even if we knew where you were coming from and at what time, chances are we still wouldn't stop you." Minato rubbed his temples, he could feel a headache growing.

"It is not a problem, you have already made it clear you won't help." She was about ready to storm out when Naruto put Sakura out to stop her, still in its case.

"Whats the issue?" From the corner of Naruto's eye he could see his father banging his head against the wall.

"I was looking for some shinobi to help in our rebellion against the corrupt Mizukage." The auburn-haired beauty spoke to him, her green eyes seeming to dart away from his red.

"I don't see what the issue is, why can't we help her out Father?" In response to Naruto's question Minato just gave Naruto a deadpanned expression.

"Because we have a cease fire with the current Mizukage, thus I can not send shinobi into Kiri." Minato looked between Naruto and Mei before sighing, already knowing what was going to happen next.

"Ok, I will help 'em out. I mean well I can do what I do best, plus I have sannin traveling rights. It's not like you can exactly keep me here anyway, I also thank you very much for 'forgetting' to tell me about that." A very sweet smile was currently on Naruto's face.

"I am sorry, but what can one man do?" Her words caused Naruto to grin wildly, he walked forward and poked her forehead, her eyes narrowing at the action, taking a step back.

"I just proved that I am actually real, now I want you to do the same to me, if you can, I will let you walk out of here however you want, if you can't well I am coming with you."

Mei looked at Naruto like he was an idiot, Minato instead just watched his son, as Mei went to poke his forehead Naruto shifted his head to the side, narrowly dodging it, this happened upwards of twenty times before she gave up.

"I don't see how that can help us in a fight, but you won." A small pout on her face at being beaten at such a childish game.

"Its simple, you were just caught in a genjutsu, without even noticing, I was standing there waving at you wasn't?" Receiving a nod from Mei Naruto continued. "So with that one genjutsu I can make an entire platoon of enemy troops fight amongst themselves, or I can make your troops seem invisible."

Mei held up one of her slender hands stopping Naruto in his tracks. "Why are you helping us?"

Naruto scratched his chin for a moment, remembering the cigarette that was still in his mouth and lit it again taking a deep breath in, the smoke never leaving his body. "Simple, I just finished a small training trip, I want to see if it paid off."

Mei nodded her head in understanding. "If you just got back you must want to rest. How long before you will be ready to leave?"

Naruto shifted his head from side to side. "Hey father, is everyone in the village at the moment?" With a shake from his father's head Naruto let out a small sigh. "Ah tomorrow night sound good?"

Mei's eyes widened a little, honestly that seemed like too little time after just coming home. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah why not? Also if you need a place to stay, I have heaps of room in the Uchiha mansion, you and anyone in your party is welcomed." Naruto gave a small bow and left, leaving Mei standing still in the Hokage's office.

"Hokage-sama, is it ok if I see that shinobi's profile?" Minato gave her a small nod regarding her question, pulling the profile out of his desk.

Looking down he had only done a handful of missions. "Is this some kind of joke?" Mei nearly spat at the man, Minato let out a drawn out sigh holding up a second folder in his hand.

"If you open this, you are not allowed to speak about what you see inside... am I clear? Remember he is my shinobi and my son, he takes his orders from me." The stern look on Minato's face was almost enough to make her question looking inside the folder, nevertheless she took it from his hands, her eyes widening on the first page.

After ten minutes she handed it back to him, having skimmed over it quickly. With a look of disbelief she started talking. "You mean to tell me, that the man who just offered to help me, is the same man I just read about?" Seeing the Hokage giver her a stern nod she almost felt like jumping for joy. "I guess today is my lucky day after all." With that she spun on her feet and left Minato's office.

The blonde kage sinking into his chair and sighing. "Only just come back and already leaving again, do you ever take a break Naruto?"

* * *

His foot hit the marble floor, he wasn't alone. Naruto's eyes narrowed, someone else was in his mansion. He backed up again the wall, Sakura held tightly in his hands, pulling his hood down he switched his eyes, the golden light they radiated hidden behind the black fabric, seeing the chakra signature he smirked.

Sending small amounts of chakra to his feet, his footfalls became soundless, his keen ears picking up the soft movements of his 'prey'. Listening as they struck against the fabric on the staircase, moving through the shadows he came up behind, Sakura still in her case, a quick hit to the back of the head. "Damn it."

"You have gotten better Anko-chan, I had to strain my ears to hear you." Pulling his hood back, his red eyes shining in the darkness, allowing him to see the form of the woman he classed as his sister.

"And you Onii-chan have gotten faster." Anko poked her tongue out and gave a bright smile.

"Gaki." Muttered the Uchiha, resting his blade on his shoulder once again. "How are you finding it?"

His question was clearly referring to her time in the Executors, with a shrug of her shoulders, a swift crack of her neck her smile widened. "Training is hell, Shinigami-sama keeps me on a tight lead, but the people are pretty fun. How long you got before you leave again?"

Naruto shifted in his robes, patting Anko on the head and moving down the halls, the purplette following close behind him. "Tomorrow night at the latest, got a new mission. Was hoping to catch up with Kurenai and her brats, seems they are out on a mission though." This was not new to Anko, they had left a few days ago.

"How did your training go?" The blade on his shoulder was new, she had seen him use a black katana before, but never this one.

"Apparently, I have learnt everything he can teach me, I just need to become more in-tune with Sakura no Suraisaa." Naruto thought it would be best to leave out the other part.

"You know your blade has the same name as one of Kurenai's students?" Anko's words caused Naruto to shake his head.

"My Sakura is older, therefore, Kurenai's Sakura has the same name as my blade. When you are given your weapon, we will see how your skills have been polished." Naruto's ear twitched hearing someone walk up the path, a few moments later Anko's did too. "That should be the client. If you will excuse me."

Anko watched as Naruto left, when she got her weapon they would spar, she figured he might actually try in this one, being able to see a portion of what he was capable of excited her to no end.

"Welcome to my home Terumi-san, I hope it is up to your standards." Naruto's voice reached Anko's ears, a second voice quickly coming after.

"Please just call me Mei, I have to say Naruto-san, I did not expect someone like you to live here." Mei's green eyes looked around the house, if you could even call it that, it was HUGE, plus it had an old villa kind of feel to it.

"It was my grandfathers, there is someone in the kitchen at the moment, other than that the house is empty, showers and bedrooms are upstairs, feel quite free to make yourself at home." The leader of the rebels gave a small bow of her head.

"I think I might put my things down and freshen up a bit."

Mei walked up the stairs, she had a travel bag over her shoulder, Naruto prayed it was full of scrolls, otherwise it was just a waste of space. Once she reached the top floor she saw a few doors open, not knowing the difference between the open and closed doors she moved to the one near the end of the hall, its door closed shut.

With a twist of the handle she pulled the door open, regret coming to her face instantly. "What are you doing in my room?" The naked figure in the middle of the room spoke softly, turning around on her feet and coming to a stop, her well developed assets jiggling for a moment longer.

"I didn't know sorry." Mei put a hand up to cover her eyes, turning away from the purple haired lady before her.

"Closed doors mean in use, whether they be someones room or the bathroom. Those bedrooms that are open should be treated like guest rooms, another thing, to get hot water, you have to channel katon chakra into the systems, the Uchiha built this place for its owner to live alongside his chakra, not see it as a weapon." Anko walked through the room, a towel over her shoulder.

"I'm Anko, Naruto is like my big brother, cause him any issues and you gotta deal with me 'kay?" Chucking a quick smile over her shoulder she left, heading to her shower.

Mei was a more than a little stunned, how could one be so open with their body? A pair of voices seemed to be arguing down the hall, they were growing closer, stopping just outside of the door, looking in and seeing Mei frozen in the room.

"I take it you met Anko?" Getting a quick nod from the lady in the blue dress he sighed. "She is a little spirited, here I will show you to a room." Turning on his feet Naruto looked to see Yugao impatiently tapping her foot while Tai seemed to be bored out of his mind. "Yugao, can you go get some food for Tai? I don't know when he ate last."

The purplette nodded, narrowing her eyes on Mei. "I guess we can talkk when I get back, you sure to keep strange company Naruto-sama." Yugao turned and left waving Tai down, the large tiger moving behind her.

"And that was Yugao, she doesn't really like anyone, don't feel too put out." His words did little to ease her, but she nodded nonetheless. Following Naruto as he walked down the hall, coming to a stop in front of many open rooms. "Take any from here for your choosing, if you need me I will be in the shower, dinner will be in about an hour. " Naruto walked forward a few more steps, taking off the tops of his robes, and draping it over his shoulder, showing his toned back to Mei, entering the master bedroom, her eyes able to pick up the long red drapes that reached the floor, the black shinny black carpet and even the incredibly large bed.

"Yummy." She spoke to her self looking around and finding a room that was close to Naruto's, but not close enough that it may raise suspicion. Leaving her belonging on the bed she summoned a mizu (water) bunshin to undo her dress, it really was a two person job. Letting out a sigh of relief, the extreme pressure leaving her breasts, stretching her back out and moving to the showers.

The water at first was freezing, but she quickly remembered what Anko said, not able to find anything that looked like 'systems' she placed her hand on the wall and channeled a small amount of katon chakra, the water instantly heating up to near boiling point, reducing the amount made the water cooler. A chakra control exercise she mused, no wonder the Uchiha were so strong, training even while they rest.

It took her some time before she got the water perfect, letting it run over her aching body, relieving some of its stiffness. The shower was big, definitely big enough for Naruto to be in here too, pressing her up against the wall, his body against hers, massaging her mounds, the thought caused a small blush to appear on her face.

Naruto was a looker, that was something she could say flat out, plus she heard a rumor from her friends, one that Uchiha's had untold amounts of stamina, her blush deepened and she bit down softly on her nail. "Uchiha-sama, I deserved to be punished." She called, sticking her behind out a little more and leaning down, to give the imaginary Naruto a better look at her 'valley'. "No I don't think he would be in to that."

"What if he is the kind that likes to be punished." Standing up straight she grabbed a few strands of hair, flicking it down and making whip noises. A soft knock happened on the door to the bathroom, causing Mei to let out a little yelp.

"Ah, when your done fantasizing about Naruto, dinner is ready." Mei was actually glad it was Anko that heard her, that Yugao made her feel strange. A perverted giggle left her mouth, thinking about what could have happened if Naruto had found her.

"Mei, I do not tolerate such perverted actions inside my house." The picture of Naruto speaking while she was bent over his lap, her ass in the air while his hand raised. "I'll have to punish you for such thoughts."

The stinging sensation of his calloused hand striking her firm but, a small ripple occurring from the action. "N-no Naruto-sama, I-I didn't mean it." She would call, 'trying' to squirm free of his muscular hands.

"You know you speak out loud when you fantasize right?" Anko's voice called from the next room.

"W-what are you still doing here?" A shocked tone present in her voice.

"Ah, I live here, or did you forget about that? I have laid some fresh clothes for tonight, your other ones will be washed and dried by tomorrow morning, please do try to hurry up. I would hate to think what Naruto-_sama_ would do if you were too late to dinner." The teasing was as clear as day.

* * *

"It isn't important Yugao, leave it." Naruto's voice was dangerously cold, his golden eyes held primal anger behind them. His voice reverberating off of the stone walls.

"No, I will not just 'leave it' Naruto. Do you think I don't worry? That I don't look up at the moon when you are gone like we used to? I _care_ Naruto. If something happens like last time... I want you to get out of there." Her stance was firm and she stood in the corridor, blocking his path.

"No."

"What do you mean No?" The Anbu nearly screamed at him. Naruto held firm in his stance, his arms crossed over his chest.

"It's as I said, this won't be a repeat of Project 1. I will fulfill it to the end, with or without your blessing, it doesn't matter to me. What matters is the mission, I thought I taught you better." Yugao took a step backwards. Anger practically radiating from Naruto's form.

"W-what happened, did all our time together mean nothing?" The trickle of a tear running down her face.

"We were partners, we slept with one another, that is all, I care for your safety, you are a comrade after all, but I do not see us as anything more than friends." His words felt like a cold dagger, her solid defense broken, crumbling on the ground around her, wide eyes quivering in their sockets.

"T-this is because of Kurenai isn't it? If she wasn't around things would still be the same wouldn't they?" Pulling herself together she stood forward, her hands shaking by her sides.

"No, this is because I need to become what I was, I am too soft. I let this facade go on for far too long." His stance changed, it took on something that scared her, gone was the Naruto she knew, in his place stood Captain Commander Oni, the one she had worked with for a time, the one that walked through hell only to come back stronger.

Shaking her head Yugao ran, as fast as her legs would carry her, this Naruto had no love for anyone.

Naruto let his eyes close, the sound of Yugao leaving running through his ears, "There is too much emotion in your step." He whispered, turning around and facing the dark corner ahead. "You shouldn't listen in on conversations that don't involve you Terumi-san." She walked forward, clad in blue robes that hugged her form.

"Naruto, I told you call me Mei."

"I heard you the first time, if you can not respect my privacy, why should I respect your request?" He gave time for his words to sink in. "Come dinner is ready, we are leaving first thing in the morning. Prolonging our leave longer than needed will only add more bodies to the list." He walked right past her, not even bothering to look.

Mei shivered, his aura was completely different from a moment ago, is this that switch Anbu talk about?

* * *

**Project One.**

Eight people sat in a room, tantos on their back's, clad in Anbu gear, one stood at the head of the pack. "My name is Oni, I will be the operation leader." Naruto at age 14 had become feared in Anbu as the masked figure known as Oni.

"Once you are briefed here, you are to head straight to deployment. Do not talk about where you are going, do not even talk to anyone, not even in those in this group until we reach the starting zone. Firstly remove your masks, for this mission, you will need to know the faces of those beside you, trust them, because if you can't none of us will make it back." Naruto pulled his mask away, showing his sharingan eyes to the group, his emotionless face in place.

"My name is Kurama, I have no family name, nor do I wan't one. I like pocky, watching the moon and practicing my skills, said skills cover the majority of all ninja related subjects, my medical experience is limited to mending broken bones, my fuinjutsu is at the stage where I can create and break down class three seals. I excel in genjutsu and kenjutsu, like my eyes would suggest I am also capable of high level ninjutsu, Fire and Lightning both at tier three." Naruto moved back and sat down, watching another stand.

"My name is Hikaru Kaname, I like the wilderness and helping those that I can. My skills are restricted to Kenjutsu and ninjutsu. I look forward to working with you all." Kaname had long blue hair, pulled back into a ponytail tied off at both the top and just up from the bottom. Her figure was that of a well-trained kunoichi, she looked to be around 16, her amber eyes were so full of life.

An older man stood, pulling down his mask, a primal grin on his face, his jet black eyes going well with his silver Mohawk. "Names Kanku, our families don't matter here, so I will just leave that out. I love fighting, I guess that is why I joined Anbu. It is rumored my skills with the blade are second only to the captains. Normally I am used to create chaos on the battlefield. I look forward to seeing if Kurama is as strong as the rumors say he is." Kanku sat back down, smirking across at Naruto.

A younger girl, maybe the same age as Naruto stood, her blonde hair pulled into a sideways ponytail, trailing down the front of her shoulder. "Sarashi is what I am called, I am not much of a front line fighter, but I am the best medic that Anbu has, I hate seeing people hurt, that is the reason I train so hard to improve my medical abilities. I want to make sure we all get back alive." Sarashi gave a deep bow to the group, her green eyes showing a life she had missed behind them.

"My name... call me Crusher, I focus heavily on earth styled ninjutsu to complement my lightning fast taijutsu and heavy hitting style. I like testing my strength against others, like Kanku, I want to test my skills against Kurama. I hope we fight someone strong on this mission." Crusher was a beast of a man, standing at nearly 7ft, his brown hair was short and spiky, his eyes a dull brown.

"Rusty is the name, worked with Kurama a few times, he lives up to the title he holds. I focus mainly on a long range support style of fighting, I can scrap in close quarters if it comes to it though, mostly though, I like to make sure all of our gear is in top shape. After this operation, I plan on proposing to the misses, so lets get home safe eh?" Rusty, his hair was a mixture of brown and red, he was around 5ft 6' and of a slimmer build, a bright smile on his face, his brown eyes full of life.

"Kagemena, I hail from the Senju clan, one of its final descendants, I joined Anbu so I would not become breeding stock for the village, I have low tolerance for perverts and men in general. I like to fight with my fists and blade, using my grandfathers style of suiton manipulation to complement my sword skills. I have no issues thus far with this squad, don't make me change my mind." Her white hair was pulled back, looping around the front into a braid that ran down her breasts. Her amber eyes were cold and piercing. The locked with Naruto's and softened for a moment, quickly regaining her harsh glare.

"Kurama and Rusty already know me, but I am Hanayuki, I have the ability to use Hyton and mix that along with my genjutsu, confusing and creating havoc on the enemy. I like spending time with my squad and getting to know who I am working with. I reckon we all go out for a drink when we get back, a celebration of sorts?" The other members of the task force grinned at her suggestion, long wavy black hair ran down her back, with bright red eyes, and an even brighter smile, she was only a year younger than Naruto and found herself watching him more and more often. This could be her chance to pull away from his shadow, to be able to stand at his side.

Naruto took a step forward clearing his throat, all eyes turning to him. "Now that we are all acquainted, at 0800 an S.O.S signal was received, the signal came from beneath Konoha, approximately 200 metres, at 0900 hours a group of four Anbu rookies were sent to investigate, Hokage-sama thinking nothing of it. The group arrived at 0915, com's were lost within half an hour, we received a call for backup at 1100, the person sounded distressed, completely out of it. Currently it is 1110 hours and we are the reinforcements, we are going to be going deep into a lab that shouldn't exist, neither I nor the Hokage know what we will find inside. Our orders are to figure out what is down there and put a stop to it. After I am done talking you are to all report to rally point Bravo, there is a temporary encampment placed there, I heard that we were going to be testing some new toys for the Hokage while we are on this op. Suit up and meet me over there, DISMISSED."

"Hai Taichou." The seven roared, moving after Naruto, vanishing down a dim corridor.

* * *

The camp was busy, the task force was immediately recognised though and waved over to a nearby tent, Naruto stepped inside first and let out a low whistle. "So these are the 'toys' Hokage-sama spoke about?" His questioned earned him a quick nod.

"It is a new type of battle armour, it just finished its experimental stages, there may still be a few bugs with it, but it is nothing that should slow you guys down. Plus we also have kunai and shuriken launchers, it took us some time to figure out the launching and reloading components to them, but now we have made it as simple as possible." The man in a lab coat walked to the front of the group, a target poked up before him, pulling out the kunai launcher he pressed down the trigger, three instantly being released and digging deep into the target.

Bringing the launcher down he pulled out a cartridge, quickly replacing it with a new one, flicking a switch on the side and firing another three. "They hold more than three per cartridge, I just wanted to show you the rough reload speed, I hope they come in handy." The task force nodded and moved around the room, getting fitted.

Naruto walked out first, now in combat boots, a dark pair of pants, made of a thicker material, same with his top, on his arms were a pair of shuriken launchers, he had already been briefed on how to operate them. Simply sending chakra to the launcher, a small pack on his hip contained fresh cartridges, his left hip had the kunai launcher hanging from it, resting inside its sturdy holster. The cartridges for that were located lower down on his leg. His right leg had a combat knife attached to wear the cartridges would go. He was wearing a dark shirt, made of the same material as the pants, a sturdy vest of the top.

The vest contained more than enough pockets for all of his scrolls, his black hair was running down his back, a strange headset of sorts around his chin. Apparently it was a communication device, that worked between his squad and the camp.

The other members of the squad came out, all wearing the same outfit, they looked good. "You guys ready?"

"Hai!"

"Then lets move." He moved across to the bench and picked up his tanto, securing it to his back with chakra, walking up to the door ahead of them, being fascinated by its sheer size. It slowly opened, just enough for his group to enter, once inside it closed, leaving them in the dark.

Naruto's red eyes able to see what was around him. Pressing down on his headset he switched to the channel they were told. "Command, this is Oni, we do have a way of seeing in this place don't we?"

_"Hai Kurama-sama, on the right side of your headset should be a torch, the same device is on the kunai launchers."_ The information was quickly given to his team, all switching the torches on. Their heads looking around the room, taking in the place, it was way ahead of its time.

"I want nothing sneaking up on us, spread out a little and keep those lights up. We don't know what we are dealing with here."

* * *

**Present time.**

Naruto shot out of his bed, a cold sweat across his body. "Turn back!" He screamed, his fists bawling into the sheets, releasing it was a dream he slowly got out of bed, moving to the bathroom and quickly washing up, drying his hair he moved down to the kitchen, putting the kettle on and starting on breakfast, the heavy yawning behind him alerting him to the company that had just sat down.

"Are you feeling ok Naruto? Normally you would scold me for being so noisy as I walk around." Anko currently had a major case of bed head, it was out at every angle like it was trying to get away. Currently she was clad in a long t-shirt and panties, sitting on a stool behind the bench, kicking her legs back and forth.

"Just had a bad dream was all. Nothing to worry yourself over... so you gotten used to the times that Executor uses?" He looked up to see her pointing at her hair and bags under her eyes.

"Does it look like I am used to it?"

Naruto smiled brightly at her for a moment, placing a cup of coffee down in front of her. "It helps, also you either are able to cope with the difference or you just drag yourself through." Pouring himself a cup he went back to the frying pan, stirring the bacon and sausage into the rice and egg, the two having already bonded.

Grabbing a black bottle his tossed some of its contents into the pan, the liquid quickly tainting the white rice, turning it a light shade of brown. Four plates were served up, Anko giving him a bright smile and digging into the food as he walked up the stairs. "Terumi-san, breakfast is ready."

"Masdvhqw."

Naruto rose a brow at the sound that had come from the other side of the door, gently pushing it open, he checked to make sure she was under the sheets before walking up, gently rocking her awake. "Terumi-san, breakfast is ready."

Her sleepy green eyes looked at him blankly for a few moments, slowly widening in shock. "N-naruto-san, what are you doing in here?" She bolted upright, wrapping the sheets around her torso, making sure to cover everything.

"I tried waking you up from outside, but you just mumbled something at me. So I opened the door, checked you were decent, then made my way here to wake you up." His explanation didn't do much to help ease her embarrassment.

"I will be done in a few minutes." She spoke softly, Naruto turning around to walk away, Mei standing up behind him dropping the sheet to the ground. "Naruto?" She questioned with a smirk on her face.

The raven haired man turning around, his sharingan eyes burning the image into his head, quickly changing them to his golden ones he nodded. "Yes Terumi-san?"

"I forgot never mind." She walked away innocently to the shower, Naruto shaking his head as he left. One thing on his mind, _'What kind of ninja sleeps nude?' _

Breakfast passed quickly, with Mei walking down in her blue dress that she came to Konoha in. She looked across to Anko who was still scantily dressed, the purplette finished her meal and stood up giving Naruto a quick hug. "Thanks for breakfast Onii-chan." She walked away up her stairs, Naruto shaking his head.

"Gaki."

A chuckle quickly drew his attention back to his guest, her legs crossed in such a manner that you could almost see her undergarments, or at least that was part of the illusion. "What did you think?"

"Hnn?"

"Naruto we both know you saw, I also believe I may have seen some rosy cheeks afterwards." She managed to make sure he was watching as she placed with a piece of sausage on her lips.

"Terumi-san."

"Please Naruto, call me Mei, I insist." She smiled hungrily at him, causing him to sigh.

"If I do, will you stop playing these games?" He spoke dryly, they were only cute to a certain extent.

"I honestly have no idea what you are talking about Naruto." Swapping how her legs were crossed in such a way that allowed him to see further up her dress.

Naruto took his plate and washed it doing the same with Mei's a few minutes latter. "Get your things Mei, I want to spend most of the day traveling." he left her sitting in the kitchen while he went up stairs, quickly returning with his clothes from yesterday, his blade resting over his shoulder and a strange satchel like thing hanging from his waist. "Are you ready?"

"Hai, we just have to stop in Wave first, I left someone there to get some money for our group." She moved closer to Naruto, taking the edges of his robes in her hands, pulling them out a little, his hood creeping down a little further. "Much better, you'll be our black saviour right?"

"Lets just go." Something had changed in Naruto, it was like the argument she heard last night sparked something in him.

* * *

**PA: Yeah no Omake D: But I hope you enjoyed Project One's first introduction, I got the idea from a movie, I wonder if you can guess which one:D**


	8. Chapter 8

**PA: I just want to first of all say, yes, Project One was inspired from the movie Doom. Also I am getting a shit ton of reviews/Pm's asking if this can be changed to a harem fic... my answer is I will think about it, the thought has crossed my mind a few times, plus I have already thought of a way it could come about. Actually just chuck a review stating either a 'Yes we need some Harem.' Or 'No polygamy is wrong and dirty.' If it does go ahead though... there will be no more than 4 partners, max. **

**Mejciu: Tobi will not be met for some time, also the Madara versus Naruto fight, I get chills every time I think about it, I know it is ages away but still the thought of it prompts me to write more and more. This is not going to be the same boring Naruto waltzing into Kirigakure and defeating the whole village, I have read so many of those, I too am tired of that overused section, yes he was the only sent from Konoha, there is more than one reason why that is the case.**

**PAPAG00SE: I completely agree, the wave mission will be done a little differently, but it is needed for character development.**

**Cerulean Knight: Its ok, I hate Yugao and Hayate as well, its just so wrong, sure they are both swordsman but that's about all they really have. Godzilla, well that came right out of left field, but, you have given me an idea, I won't say to much but, you can expect to see Godzilla in the story at some point, not as a summon though.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I own the motion picture Doom, Project One is just loosely based around that title.**

* * *

"Zabuza-sama, I brought the book like you asked for." A feminine voice spoke, next to a large veiled bed. A bandaged hand reached out and grabbed it, giving a small grunt as he sat up, his hands flicking through the pages.

Uchiha Naruto

Class: S

Rank: Jounin

Village: Konohagakure

Information: Not much is known about Naruto, his mission record is almost laughable though.  
He shows a high affinity in both Raiton and Katon, this is paired with swordplay that  
may rival even the most veteran of kenjutsu users.

Description: Long black hair, with either glowing red or gold eyes, his appearance  
is such that he could pass as Uchiha Madara himself. Approach with extreme caution.

"Another Uchiha makes it into the mists bingo book. How ridiculous." Zabuza grumbled out to himself, flicking to the next page.

Oni

Class: S borderline SS

Rank: Unknown

Village: Unknown.

Information: Oni is said to be a master of stealth, able to attack from right in front of you without you noticing.  
Is skilled with; A bow and arrow, that is more silent than the wind,  
Kunai that are sharper than the standard Anbu Grade,  
A katana, its blade is a beautiful mixture of pink and black.

Description: Oni is normally seen wearing a black noiseless form fitting suit of armour with  
a helmet that mirrors his name.  
Flee on sight.

The bandaged nin's eyes went wide. "Oni, are you wielding the fabled Sakura? If so it may be best that we avoid one another." The next page did not bring any hope to the man.

Shi (Death/Four)

Class: S borderline SS

Rank: Ex Anbu Captain

Village: Konohagakure

Information: Is said to hold tier three lightning manipulation,  
incredibly proficient with a katana.  
Is also rumoured to have a jutsu that can freeze time.

Description: Shi can be identified by a white mask with four blood red lines running its length.  
He appears to be rather childish in nature but do not let that fool you,  
his grasp on tactics is almost at the level of a Nara.  
Flee on sight.

"Is Konoha really getting stronger, or is the rest of the world just becoming weaker? Haku, I will be able to move fully by tomorrow right?" Zabuza spoke moving out of his bed, standing to his full height and stretching.

"If you had been doing the exercises I set you, you would be able to move properly right now." The young Ice ninja stated, while she quickly fixed him some more medicine.

"Mei should be back soon, we should finish this job up tomorrow, I want you at your best Haku."

"Hai Zabuza-sama."

* * *

"Kurenai-sensei, should you be moving around?" A pinkette questioned as their jounin instructor moved to the table without her crutches.

"I will be fine Sakura, but I believe tomorrow will be the day." A worried look was on her face as she spoke.

"What makes you say that Kurenai-nee?" A blonde child asked, nervous expression present on her face.

"Naruto put Anko and myself in that state, healing us quickly after with natural medicine. It took us nearly a week to fully recover. I doubt the backup I sent for will arrive in time. That means we will need to go all out from the start... understood?" Looking around the room she saw her students nodding, meeting the red eyes of Sasuke.

Before she could even voice the question the Uchiha replied. "Naruto-sensei told me to practice keeping them on for as long as I could, he said I should keep constantly pushing myself, not falling into the same habit that our clan did." He gave a small nod, looking down at the food on his plate, such dribble, but considering what they had to work with, he was impressed by how well it tasted.

"I still think its stupid that you spend more time with Nii-san than I do." The cute blonde pouted, poking at her food with the chopsticks.

"Natsumi-chan, it is because Sasuke has no one else to teach him his clan's style, while you have both your mother and father. Because Sakura does not come from a clan I have spent a majority of my time training her, while you two have continued work from your respective teachers." Her answer made the three genin frown, each having forgotten about what they were here for.

"We should rest for tonight, tomorrow will be a big day, I just pray I am wrong."

* * *

"We're stopping for today, we will reach wave by tomorrow if we stay at today's pace." Naruto spoke dropping down from the trees, having not even broken a sweat from the run, Mei on the other hand had dropped down and was now leaning against a tree as she panted heavily.

"Y-you s-sure, w-we could al-lways keep -going?" Mei spoke between pants, trying to stand up properly and looked across at Naruto, some things were just not fair.

"I am sure, you will need to recover for the last stretch tomorrow, otherwise I would be stuck carrying you."

That actually didn't sound to bad in Mei's head, seeing the look on Naruto's face she decided it was best not to voice that thought.

"You did bring a tent didn't you?"He looked around to see a very nervous look on Mei's face. "I shall take that as a no, we can share mine then, that is if you have no issues with it?"His question got a rather hurried nod from the green-eyed vixen.

Reaching into the satchel on his leg Naruto pulled out a large scroll, snapping it open and slamming his hands down, a large tent erected with him standing inside. He looked around for a moment, checking everything was in place. Walking up to the door and opening it. "You can put your things inside, I will go find us something to eat."

Mei turned around to respond but noticed he was already gone, with a sigh she walked into the tent, it was much larger than she had thought, maybe he sealed extra rooms into his tent? Finding a bed already inside she put her bag next to it, giving a large stretch before flopping down onto it, marveling at how comfortable it was.

"Naruto, you really are something else aren't you?" She mused to herself, half an hour passed when Naruto entered the makeshift camp again, a large deer strung over his shoulder, an arrow clean through its skull, seeing that he seemed to be able to seal a number of things, she guessed a bow was one of those.

He took a knife from somewhere on his body and gutted the animal, moving its insides to a large tarp, a large white tiger coming and laying next to it a moment later. "You took your time Naruto."

"Did that tiger just talk?" Caused the busty woman, her hand pointing at Tai-Long, while a certain degree of shock was on her face.

"Yeah, he is my familiar of sorts, its name is Tai-Long, also why are you so surprised, all summon animals can talk?" His eyes never once leaving the deer as he skinned it, then started to carve away chunks of meat.

"I haven't met a summon before, not many people in Kirigakure have them, actually I think there are two contracts, if that in Kiri." She answered honestly, looking up at the tiger as he ate.

"That's sad to hear, but pleasant at the same time, sorry its just that we are not exactly allies, nor are we enemies, so to hear that you have such few contracts means you would be against siege tactics. I don't just see them as things to fight though, I see them as my partners, thats why I am sad that you guys don't have that many, losing such a chance to form a bond. Maybe that is just my mindset though." Naruto cut off the leg of the deer and threw it across to Tai.

The tiger easily catching it and laying down on the tarp again. This continued for awhile, before Naruto moved of to get some firewood, casting a small katon jutsu to start the fire. pulling some sticks out and putting the meat on them to cook. "You don't strike me as the type of person to camp Naruto." The statement made by Mei caused Naruto to raise a brow.

"I lived in a forest for the majority of my life, regardless of my appearance or my name, people still just saw me as the bastard son of the Hokage. I ended up becoming one with the shadows, earning a name for myself that is feared throughout the nations. I had to work to get to where I am now, I do not wish I had it easier and there are very few things I would change." Naruto looked around for a moment before standing, taking his top off and walking away.

"I am going to take a dip in the river, can you make sure Tai doesn't take anymore food?"

"Hai." She answered watching him leave. Licking her lips, that body was almost too good to resist.

"You should relax with your advances, it is best not to push a Uchiha." Tai-Long spoke, looking up from the leg her was gnawing on.

"I have no idea what you a-"

"Don't play games, I don't like them, heed my advice or don't, you will be the one that suffers in the end." Before Mei could even respond the tiger put his head down, signaling that the conversation was over

* * *

**Project One.**

"Kurama, what classification is this mission?" Hanayuki spoke from next to the black-haired man, his red eyes scanning the area around him.

"Its Black, not even a name have been given for this mission. Pretty much, right now no body knows where we are, this place doesn't exists as far as the village is concerned." Naruto's hand shot up to stop the squad. "Something isn't right."

A scoff was heard from behind Naruto. "No shit captain, we get sent into some shithole of a place, that we know nothing about." Kanku nearly spat, looking around him quickly.

"No you idiot, Kurama-kun is talking about the fact that none of this adds up. The only one that would think of doing something like this is Orochimaru, but he defected with the current Hokage was elected, meaning this place should have been abandoned." The red-eyed woman spoke, hoping no one noticed her slip of tongue.

"Really Kurama-_kun_? Didn't know you felt about the captain like that." Taunted a voice from behind her.

"S-shut up Rusty." Her ever intelligent reply came.

"Both of you enough, we need to focus here. If this is the work of Orochimaru, there is no telling what could be down here. First I think we need to find the power source, these torches can only do so much." Naruto could definitely feel something in the air. The squad quickly agreed, red and amber eyes watching his every movement.

Coming to a door Naruto stopped, placing his hand against it. His eyes flashes to gold for a moment. "I can't feel any movement on the other side. That doesn't mean you can take it easy." Pull his hand away, he looked back to his team, giving them a small nod, holding his kunai launcher tightly with his right hand, his left around his tanto, sparks of lightning running its length.

Rusty moved forward, his hand on the doors handle, giving a small nod to the squad, receiving one back he pulled down, swinging the door open, their torches lighting up the dark path. A body, it looked like it had been lent up against the door, fell forward, blood oozing out of its mouth, no that was incorrect, it was flowing from the large hole in its throat.

"It's rather recent, possibly within the last hour, lets move. No need to keep the face in our minds." Even as the words reached the ears of his squad, three of them knew the captain could never forget, the curse of a Uchiha.

The squad quickly searched through the rooms, no life detected. "Captain, all we are passing is bodies."

"Sarashi, an Anbu team was sent down before us, that is to be expected." Crusher's voice boomed through the halls, Naruto was actually surprised the man could fit in them.

"She was talking about the fact that none of them have chakra pathways, am I correct Sarashi?" Naruto's eyes had been flicking from gold to red ever since they opened the door, it was the best way for him to spot any threats.

"Indeed it was, I was wondering if I would be able to look over a few bodies, maybe see why that is happening?"

"Approved, we split into two groups, Myself, Rusty, Kagemena and Hanayuki make squad 1, Crusher, Sarashi, Kanku and Kaname will be squad two, Crusher will be acting captain for this squad. We are to report in whenever we find something of interest, as well as every ten minutes, the radios should be kept on at all times, am I clear?" Naruto's voice bouncing off the walls around them.

"Hai Taichou."

* * *

**Present Time.**

"Don't split up!" Like the night before Naruto awoke from his nightmare, having no idea why this had started to come back now. A groggy Mei jumped out of her bed, kunai in her hands, Naruto had to praise whatever deity was listening right now that she actually wore panties to bed, this time.

"Naruto you ok?"

"Fine, it was just a bad dream." He threw the covers from his form and moved to the flap of the tent, dispelling his clones that had watched throughout the night. It seemed like it was a rather boring night. The sun slowly peeking its head over the horizon. "We should look at getting ready to move, after breakfast of course."

"Oh Naruto can you feed me some more of your sausage." A cheery voice came from within the tent, causing the Uchiha to clutch, his right eye.

He couldn't even tell her off, or ask her to stop, she wasn't trying anything sexual anymore, it was now just the way she worded everything, it was enough to drive someone to breaking point.

* * *

"Haku, there is a strange feeling in this wind." Zabuza spoke, putting his plate into the sink, strapping his large blade onto his back.

"Maybe you are just nervous Zabuza-sama?"

"Eager Haku, Momochi Zabuza doesn't know the meaning of the word nervous!" The large man poked at his chest.

"Zabuza-sama, nervous means to be easily agitated or alarmed." Haku spoke holding a book up before her.

"I didn't ask you to explain it. Nevermind, lets just get started."

"At once Zabuza-sama."

The two shinobi leaving their hidden base and heading towards the bridge, a mist gently sweeping over it.

* * *

Kurenai stood in the middle of the bridge builders house, her hand tightly clutched around a glass, Natsumi took great interest in her instructor this morning. "You Ok Kurenai-nee? You seem a little out of it today?"

Kurenai looked at the tea in the bottle of her glass, "A katana." She mused out loud, gripping the glass tighter

"KURENAI-NEE!" Screamed Natsumi right next to the onyx haired woman causing her to jump.

"Natsumi-chan, you scared me there." Breathing out a sigh of relief, how long has she been in her own world for?

"I have been trying to talk to you for like five minutes Kurenai-nee." The blonde deadpanned, her instructor had been like this since Naruto left.

"Natsumi-chan, did Naruto ever tell you the story of the Uchiha's method of war?" Kurenai's voice traveled through the house, at the mention of both Naruto and Uchiha in one sentence Sasuke was seen walking down the stairs.

"The leaders of their divisions would sit down for tea beforehand, reading the leaves that stayed in the bottom. Depending on the symbol at the bottom they would go to battle or not." Sasuke called as he reached the table and took a seat.

"Correct Sasuke, do you remember the symbols that the leaves could form?" Her question got a look of confusion from the young Uchiha, he nodded none the less.

"Scythe for victory, a flower for death and a katana for a grave defeat. Why do you ask Kurenai-sensei?" Responding to Sasuke's question she showed him her tea cup, his eyes swapping to the clans trademark red. "That was years ago, I could be wrong though." He gave a shrug and moved to the kitchen, grabbing something to eat.

_'No Sasuke, that's what he told me too.' _Kurenai inwardly mused, frowning at the leaves.

* * *

Naruto and Mei were currently running through the trees again, the later panting, again. Naruto did not know whether he was just incredibly fit or she was the opposite. "Your comrade you left in wave, who was it?" Naruto thought it would probably be better if he knew.

"Momochi Zabuza and his apprentice."

"I am sorry but are you ill?"

"PARDON?" She roared back at him, his question was clearly an insult.

"Zabuza is rumoured to be the second most bloodthirsty person to come out of mist, and you left him alone, in a trade village, with only his apprentice?"

"Wow, maybe I am ill."

"Tai-Long!"

"Already on it your lordship." The tiger felt the snide remark was needed, black flames quickly consumed their group, dropping them down in the middle of wave. Mei fell to the ground, not at all used to the high speeds at which they just traveled.

It would be this very moment went two thugs with blades over their shoulders walked down the roar, spotting Mei's prone form and looking to 'score lucky'. Naruto was currently looking around the village, the two thugs still well within his vision.

"Hehe, looks like kami has blessed us today eh Zori?" The man who spoke had tattoos over his left arm and torso, an eye patch over his right eye and a few scars on the left side of his face, he walked up to Mei, and started poking her with his foot. "Looks like she is down for the count, I am sure Gato-sama wouldn't mind a new one."

That name opened up Naruto's ears, he hadn't heard it for a few years, but now was not the time to reminisce.

"The boss just wanted the bridge builders family, lets focus on getting 'em first before we go looking for playthings, who knows, the demon might get killed off, meaning we get even more beauties for ourselves." Zori, at least that is what Naruto assumed his name was, had white/blue hair, a dark purple beanie and strange lines darting down his eyes.

"By demon, you wouldn't happen to be referring to Momochi Zabuza would you?" Naruto kept his voice as calm as possible, looking towards the two as he approached.

"Yeah why? You got a problem with him?"

"Sadly no, see the woman you were thinking of abducting is currently a client, we are hear to collect a partner of hers, one Momochi Zabuza, thus you are in the way. In other words tell me where he is and this will be painless."

The samurai scoffed at Naruto, then in a flash there was only one who was chuckling. "Y-you killed Waraji? You bastard!" Roared the younger Zori, drawing his blade and charging at Naruto, sadly he looked straight into the Uchiha's eyes.

"Where is Zabuza?" Naruto question, his genjutsu having now taken hold.

"B-bridge, he is at the bridge." Stuttered out Zori, a look of pure fear in his eyes.

"Thank you, you are no longer needed." Bringing his right hand up, a small layer of wind formed around it, Naruto looked at the hand for a moment before sighing. "Goodbye." With a strong chop he removed the head of the thug, using the man's beanie to remove the blood.

"Mei, get up, I know you are awake."

"Oh Naruto you defended my honor." She cheered waving her hand in the air and sporting a small blush.

"Lets just go." The Uchiha breathed out, he was getting too old for fangirls.

* * *

Team 7 arrived on the bridge, the mist already much thicker than it was the day before, a strange metallic smell lingered in the air, one Kurenai knew all too well. "Well you all came, how about that."

"Zabuza!" Hissed the konoha jounin through clenched teeth. Glaring as his figure came into view.

"The gaki's seem nervous Kurenai, what did you tell 'em eh?"

"Nervous, no, this is excitement." Sasuke spoke, raising his head up and showing his Sharingan eyes.

"Natsumi, Sasuke deal with the hunter-nin I will face Zabuza, Sakura, take the client and run." Kurenai didn't even need to turn back to know that Sakura had already followed her command, Natsumi and Sasuke both slapping one anothers hands as they moved off to face the hunter-nin.

"I didn't take you for a coward Kurenai." Stated the large man as he walked forward.

"What do you mean?"

"Facing me by yourself is suicide, suicide is the cowards way out." Hefting his blade from his back Zabuza moved forward, carving a trench in the bridge as Kurenai dodged to the side, her left hand henged and quickly flying through signs.

* * *

"Come on Tazuna, we have to follow orders." Moaned out the pinkette as she ran through the village, holding onto the clients hand and pulling him along.

"Sakura, is it really wise to leave your team alone like that?" The genin stopped in her tracks, the older mans words running through her head.

"I have to, they were orders from my commanding officer." Sakura stated, giving herself a small nod and moving forward a few more steps, only to stop in her tracks, a daunting visage before her.

"Is your name Haruno Sakura?" The large hooded figure clad in black asked, his voice seemed devoid of any emotion whatsoever.

"W-who is asking."

"A commanding officer."

"My name is Haruno Sakura Genin of Konohagakure, it is on my vill-"

"Sakura, please spare me the honor speech and tell me which way the bridge is."

Sakura refused to answer the man, shaking her head to the side, a nearby villager saw the act and quickly pointed the large man to where the bridge was. Naruto quickly gave his thanks.

"Sakura, you do Kurenai proud, remember to never give away information, even if it costs you your life." With that he left, Mei and Tai-Long following quickly behind him.

It was then that the genin realised he already knew who her sensei was. It only took his group a few minutes to reach the bridge, when Naruto arrived, he saw the large blade of Zabuza coming down onto the hunched over form of Kurenai. "Scream as you die, it will make it more enjoyable." Zabuza was barely able to process a flash of black from his left, right after that happened his blade became lighter, he felt a sick feeling in his stomach and he had gained the ability to fly.

"For one of the 'Seven Swordsman' that was too easy, maybe you should train him harder Mei?"

Kurenai looked up in shock, she knew that voice, opening her eyes she saw a familiar stance, looking up she saw part of the blade that was coming down at her in his hand, his other firm around a long pink and black katana. She met his red eyes. "N-naruto-kun?"

"Words cannot even express how disappointed I am in you right now Kurenai." His tone was cold, throwing the large piece of metal in his hands across to where Zabuza's body landed he moved, walking straight into the ice mirrors.

"I cannot forgive what you did to Zabuza-sama! Walking in here was a mistake." Senbons made of ice flew towards Naruto, he almost laughed, he was used to this. Covering his body in white-hot flames the mirrors around him melted leaving the ice-nin exposed.

"You will get over it, plus I am here with Mei, we are leaving." His words cut straight through to Haku causing her to stiffen and nod her head. "I need to talk with the team from Konoha first though, we can wait that long."

Once again Haku nodded and moved away, leaving Natsumi and Sasuke gaping looking at the man before them. "Go fetch Sakura, meet me back here."

"Who are you to boss me around hey?" The little blonde firecracker yelled, shaking her fist at the hooded man.

"Natsumi you are an idiot, thats Naruto."

"And how do you know that Sasuke?"

"Because, he is the only person I can think of that can create fire that hot that quickly." Stated the younger Uchiha.

"Good observation Sasuke, another one could have been that Tai-Long is sitting behind him."

The genin looked around and saw he was in fact telling the truth. "Opps?"

"No 'opps' Natsumi, go fetch your teammate, I need to have a word with Kurenai." His words caused Sasuke and Natsumi to salute and run away, quickly following his order, Naruto turned around and walked over to Kurenai, who had still yet to move, sitting there kneeling and waiting for his words.

"Firstly, what the hell kind of mission would have genin facing off against Zabuza?"

Kurenai looked away for a few moments, gaining her breath again before explaining that the mission details were not accurate. Detailing the incident with the demon brothers, how the team worked well to subdue them and even the first conflict with Zabuza, how with the help of her team she was able to pin Zabuza in a genjutsu long enough for the 'hunter-nin' to finish him off.

"The mission should have been called off after the demon brothers. What you did was heroic and idiotic, idiots and heros don't last long in this world, nor do they get a shiny grave." Naruto nearly spat out the final words, he had his views changed drastically in his time away, his nightmares were really not helping him to get back into the right mindframe either.

"What would've happened if I didn't show up?" As the words left his mouth Kurenai turned her head away, no longer able to look at him. "Chin up, Kurenai." He knelt down and pressed a finger under her chin, forcing her to look up, seeing the tears that threatened to fall. Her form moving forward and tackling Naruto to the ground, she didn't care anymore, she just wanted to feel him again.

He could quickly feel his clothes dampening, but still he raised his arms and wrapped them around her, listening to her doubt herself. He started to console her, not even understanding why he was spending so much time on the issues. "Kurenai, look at me."

Slowly but surely her head rose, her eyes looking at Naruto's. "It is good to see you again, I just wish we had met under better conditions ne?"

She nodded and moved forward, pressing her lips against his, causing Mei who was standing off to the side to fume. The two broke apart and stayed looking at each other for a time. "Its good to have you back again Naruto-kun."

"I'm not back, I am actually heading out on a mission, working for Mei behind me for a while, I don't really know how long I will be staying."

The look on Kurenai's face saddened a few degrees at hearing this. "Oh, well good luck. Come home safe ok?"

After giving her a small nod she pulled him in for a quick peck and rolled away from his body. "Remember to be careful about continuing missions in the future, you hold the Hokage's daughter and one of the last Uchiha on your squad, both are prime targets for other nations."

When Naruto put it like that she felt like an idiot, her team had a huge target painted on it yet she let them continue with something they didn't have the experience for? "I'll remember for next time."

Naruto looked at the genin as they ran onto the bridge the client in hand, a small round of applause chimed in behind the group, Zabuza snarling at what he saw. "Seems like you were bested 'Demon', it matter not numbers can win any battle." A small man in a business suit with dark glasses spoke, raising his hand into the air and dropping it down, a horde of men behind him charging forward.

Naruto slowly got to his feet, closed his eyes and put his right hand into the ram seal. The horde of thugs freezing in their steps, Kurenai's jaw dropping at seeing such a wide jutsu. **"Kami's Voice.****"** Naruto spoke softly, the bandits raising their weapons to their own throats, in one swift movements taking their own lives.

"Ningen will always be second rate compared to a weapon. Here you fall, Gato." The older Uchiha's voice seemed to bounce off of the air, coming from all directions.

The small businessman picked up a nearby sword, raising it high into the air before bringing it down into his leg, with Naruto's guidance, he served the nerves, needless to say, he dropped to the ground, awaiting judgement.

Naruto opened his eyes and finished holding the sign, those around him were absolutely speechless at what they had just seen, the genin had to move over to the side, quickly trying to regain their stomachs. "Mei, do you still doubt that I will be of use?"

Naruto staggered forward a few steps, alarming those around him. _**"Kit!"**_

_"I know Kurama, just do your best."_

He quickly regained his composure, bringing a hand up to push some hair behind his ear. "We should continue, we can rest properly when we reach your hideout Mei."

The auburn haired beauty nodded with hesitance, part of it was removed when Naruto started moving around normally again, coming up to Sasuke and Natsumi, giving them both a scroll. "You should be training, even if I am not around. Some scrolls for you two to practice with. Open them up back at home. I look forward to sparing you both when I get back, so get strong fast ok?"

The two genin gave a quick 'hai' looking at the scrolls in their hands, both had a small lightning bolt on them. His gaze turned to Sakura for a moment, he didn't know much about her at all, he wasn't even expecting to meet up with this team, he was just lucky he had already finished those scrolls. His hand moved into his satchel, fumbling around for a few moments, finding a scroll he had left alone for years. Pulling it out he mused at the tag on it. "Sakura, you should give this a try, I could never manage to open the scroll."

He tossed the scroll over to her, a smirk tugging at his lips as it rolled open. "Ah, Naruto-san?"

"That just means you have a doton affinity, I tried for awhile to force one, seems that I can only have the three I was born with. Now remember those scrolls are for your free time, Kurenai's instruction comes first, understood?"

"Hai!" The genin cheered looking at the scrolls in their hands, Naruto moved and found one more in his satchel, a smile coming to his face.

"This is for you Kurenai, a scroll containing some of my more 'feared' genjutsu, before you ask, no Kami's Voice is not on it." It wasn't a complete lie, Kami's Voice was on the scroll, just in two parts, he actually wondered if Kurenai would figure it out. He pointed Sakura to the ground, her bandages quickly wrapping around her again, he found this would be a better way of transporting his blade.

Facing his back to the Konoha group, Naruto went over to join Mei's team, flicking the now covered Sakura onto his shoulder, a trail of dust following its tip. The group vanishing into the distance.

"W-was brother always so strong?" Natsumi murmured, sinking to her knees now that Naruto was gone, the massacre before her was too much for her mind to handle.

"Sometimes it is needed for a shinobi to kill, Naruto-sensei taught me that lesson. Although it may be hard for us to stomach, this was the easiest way for the mission to be completed, Naruto-sensei acted in our best interests, we shouldn't question the method as long as the outcome is secured." The Uchiha side of Sasuke kicking in, allowing him to deal with it just a little better than the other genin.

"Naruto-kun's strength is something that can't be measured by normal means Natsumi-chan, he is a vital member of the village, his presence alone can be a deterrent to stop other nations from attacking. While I don't like to see him in that kind of light, it is true." Kurenai spoke with her head down, the scroll clutched tightly in her hands. If it wasn't for Naruto her team would be dead.

"What was that jutsu?" Sakura asked still in shock, the scene before her, for one person to do such a thing without even batting an eyelid, it was almost unheard of.

"Kami's Voice, a the only forbidden genjutsu, its one of the many that Naruto-kun has created. Having the ability to completely control your enemy, making them think or do as you wish. Apparently you need monstrous reserves to perform it, but then again, each Captain has their trump card." Kurenai mused, thinking back, Kakashi had his lightning blade, Yugao had her crescent dance. Now that she actually thought about it, she didn't know anywhere near enough jutsu, nor have any potent killing techniques.

"Is there anyway to beat Kami's Voice?" Sakura questioned, unsure whether it was right or not to ask about the weaknesses of allied techniques.

"Breaking out of it leaves you nearly paralyzed. You could easily be killed off during that time and the caster would know instantly." Kurenai replied remembering the time she broke out of it, the genin didn't need to know about how much strain it put on their minds, it would only make them hesitant.

"So its unbeatable huh? Leave it to Onii-san to create a jutsu that you can't beat."

"No, it has a weakness, one that very very few are able to exploit." Kurenai looked over to Sasuke, his glowing red eyes on display again.

"Its the sharingan, the ability to reflect the genjutsu back once we figure out we are caught. That is only at the three tome stage though." Sasuke replied, thinking back, Naruto used to teach Itachi... was there a chance Itachi knew the genjutsu?

The genin while happy to see Naruto, felt completely crushed, their first C-rank mission would have ended them had it not been for the older Uchiha, seeing the depressed look on her students faces Kurenai let out a sigh, they would be doing some intense training.

* * *

Naruto's group was sitting quietly on a boat, heading for the islands of Kiri, the large bandaged nin he tossed away earlier sat down in front of him, staring intently at the Uchiha, Naruto slowly opened his eyes, a bored look on his face. "Yes Momochi?"

Zabuza's eyes shifted to the blade resting in Naruto's lap, the bandages now off of it. "How do you have that blade?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes on the man before him, his sharingan spinning wildly. "Sakura has been in my possession for nearly 16 years Momochi, choose your next words carefully, I am not some common thief."

The swordsman's eyes widened in shock. "S-so your O-Oni? The S-ranked Nin, as well as Uchiha Naruto?" Questioned the man, putting a little bit of distance between them.

"Thats correct, I used to wear the mask known as Oni." Naruto's voice was cold, his eyes scanning around the boat.

"C-can I see it? You are like a ghost, everyone wants you dead but no one knows where you're from."

Naruto slowly rose to his feet, bandages wrapping around Sakura again, a small spike of Kurama's chakra flew over his body, black liquid forming out of his pores, quickly extending and wrapping around his body, his free hand raising to pull down his mask, the haunting visage of Oni taking form. "This is what you wanted to see?" His voice was distorted, almost robotic like.

It would be this moment that Mei walked around the corner, dropping what she had in her arms and staring at the figure in shock. Her green eyes wide with shock. "I-its you, after all this time?"

Naruto turned on his feet tilted his head to the side. "You have seen this form before?"

"You saved me, from those nobles in fire country, I know a lot of time has passed, but I never forgot that armour, that mask. I was always so fixated on hearing about your adventures, but I could never figure out which nation you were from?" Mei walked forward, slowly putting a hand on the armour, making sure it was actually real.

Slowly it faded away revealing the Uchiha she had been flirting with for the past few days, her eyes widening even further. "You saved me N-naruto?"

"Oni was the form I used while in Anbu. I saved a lot of people during that time, sadly it was nowhere near as many as the amount I took from the world." Naruto sat back down on the deck, looking up at the sky above him. "Its kind of funny, the way the world works. You would call me a hero, a saviour, while others would call me a sinner, a murderer. When it comes down to it though, what am I? Like all shinobi, I am just a mercenary, I do not fight for some just cause, I fight because my village asks me to." He let out a small snort, his words left a bitter taste in his own mouth.

"If thats the case why are you here Naruto?" Mei question her 'hero'.

"What do you mean?"

"The Hokage said he wouldn't send aid, yet you came anyway?"

"I read what my father wanted, he said Konoha can't help you, as long as the shinobi was not spotted, Konoha would be able to help, there are only three people who could be sent on a mission like this, two of them have left the village. Thus leaving only me." Naruto looked at her lazily. "You have your answer, do I still seem like how you have held me Mei?"

Mei waved Zabuza to leave, the large nin gave a small grumble but complied, the green-eyed woman sat down and looked at Naruto. Her legs sticking out to the side. "I think you just don't like letting people in, thats why you try to portray yourself as a villain, but you actually feel better when you do things that people would consider 'good'." She slowly leant closer to the Uchiha, his eyes narrowing. Mei pulled her hair away from her face, pressing her lips softly against him, slowly moving back and giving a warm smile.

"But no matter what people say, you Uchiha Naruto, are my hero." Leaving her words with him she got up and left, swaying her hips with each step.

"Do you believe her words Tai-Long?"

"I don't know what to believe." Replied the tiger walking out of the shadows, laying down next to Naruto, the Uchiha letting out a sigh and dropping his back down to the deck, looking up as the sky slowly changed to night. A few minutes later falling to sleep.

* * *

**Project One.**

"I am sorry Crusher, can you repeat what you just said?" Naruto spoke into the headset, having just passed through another door, he had realised something, this lab was way too high-tech. He had seen the one on the surface, there was about 10-20 years difference, the question on his mind though, just what was it being used for.

_"Something just tore down the hall, I fired off a few kunai from the launcher, can't confirm if I hit or not. These launchers are pretty terrible Taichou, permission to salvage the kunai from them?" _Crushers words put Naruto on edge.

"Permission granted. I want a tight defense on Sarashi, I trust in her skills to figure out what is causing the loss of the chakra network. We are still flying dark here. Stay awake. Stay vigilant. My squad will fall back and check out what you saw." Naruto's voice doing wonders to calm Hanayuki, the situation was not within her comfort zone.

_"Taichou, that thing was big and it was fast, be careful out there, we are still where you left us if you need to fall back." _There was worry in the large man's voice, something that Naruto picked up on.

"Understood." Naruto turned around to face his squad, his eyes darting between the three members. "We are doubling back, something slipped past Squad 2, we will be taking a break though, you have permission to salvage the kunai from their launchers if you feel it will interrupt your style." His command was met with a quick series of nods, watching Rusty sit down and go to work on the launcher Naruto let out a sigh, his body slumping against the wall.

"You look like shit Taichou, no offense of course." Kagemena leant next to him, her amber eyes looking over his face carefully.

"Every single corpse we have walked by, will forever be stuck in my mind, I guess I am just feeling sorrowful for myself though. But hey someone has to right."

"I know who you are, _Naruto_." She whispered the last part, quickly catching the Uchiha of guard.

"I don't believe that changes much, I am still here, still doing my job, regardless of who I really am." He calmly stated, closing his eyes for a moment, swapping to gold while they were behind their lids. A sigh passed through his lips, what was the point, nothing had a chakra system in this place, only his task force.

"It shows that we can still achieve greatness, even if no one is willing to accept us. I actually admire you, I have heard stories about what you went through."

"I hardly think I have 'achieved' greatness, I am just another tool for the village to use. There will be no service for me when I die, we are shadows, we live and die, that is all. That is shinobi." Naruto spun his tanto around his hand, there was something in the air.

"I think you are just scared to let others in." Kagemena spoke, her face coming awfully close to Naruto's, a small smile on her face.

Naruto's eyes narrowed, with his free hand he quickly moved her out of the way, stepping forward with a palm thrust coated in lightning. With his tanto he swung upwards, in a large cleaving strike, lightning sparking from his blade. A large roar rocked through the base, Naruto's targets head lowering to look at the Uchiha, red eyes meeting slitted gold, like a snakes.

Scaly muscle-bound skin, jagged shark like teeth snapping at the Uchiha. **"Raiton: Discharge."** Naruto snapped out, lightning arching from his back to his arms, sending the creature backwads into a wall. Sliding forward in his stance, his blade and hand quickly became engulfed in flames. **"Katon: Hot pinch." **He quickly brought his hands onto the target, one on either side, bringing them together in a cutting motion, burning through the scaly skin.

The beast flopping forward, his squad looking at him in shock, having not sensed the movement. Naruto brought his tanto down, stabbing it straight through the skull, it seemed to work on everything else, so by that assumption it would work on this, whatever it was.

"Crusher, my squad will be moving back to yours in a few moments. We have something you need to see." Naruto shook his head after radioing across, he must just been tired, there was no way he saw fear in this creations eyes, animals can't show emotion like that.

_"Taichou, hurry, there is something you need to see." _Once again Crusher sounded a little spooked, he was starting to think, maybe the biggest and scariest man wasn't all he was made out to be.

"We're moving in a minute, my squad will need a moment to catch their breath."

_"Ok Taichou, just be quick."_

Naruto let out a sigh, summoning a two clones to drag this thing back with them. "H-how did it get so close?" Kagemena was incredibly startled, not daring to think what would've happened had Naruto not been there.

"You relaxed in enemy territory, thats the worst mistake you can make. Even though we are currently under our village, we know nothing of the land, nor what it holds, thus its classed as hostile, when I say we are having a breather, I mean to check gear, I need you all to stay alert in here. I might not be fast enough next time." His eyes hovered over to the Senju for a moment, the regret was clear in her eyes.

"Hai Kurama."

"Lets move." His squad quickly packed up what they were doing, Kagemena staying very close to Naruto, something both Hana and Rusty noticed. The moved into the hall and Naruto could hear faint footsteps. "Crusher, is your squad in the halls?"

_"Negative Taichou, that is not one of ours." _

"Friend of Foe, reply or you will be treated as hostile." His harsh tone carrying down the hall, his squad on edge, Rusty and Hana turning around, covering their backs.

"F-friendly, I'm friendly, just a researcher here, I mean no harm." An incredibly scared voice called back through the dark.

"Come to us, we will grant you protection." Naruto called to the scientist, watching it move forward, as it stepped into the light, you could see its form trembling. It froze at the creature being carted by the clones.

"Y-you killed one?"

"Correct, come with us, we have a second squad back in the direction you came from. We can get you patched up there, try anything funny, I'll kill you myself. Understood?"

"H-hai. I mean you know harm." The man stuttered out quickly, Naruto's eyes narrowing on him. Swapping to gold for a moment. He looked at the creature behind him, no chakra system, the person in front of him... no chakra system... he quickly pulled his tanto and rushed forward cutting the man's throat, watching his body fall to the ground.

"W-WHAT THE HELL KURAMA!" Roared Kagemena, shocked at what happened. Naruto calmly cleaned the strange blood from his tanto, raising to his height again and summoning a clone to carry the corpse.

"He has no chakra system, just like the creature my clones are carrying, I was never asked to bring anyone back from this mission, I am certainly not taking any chances while we don't no what we are dealing with. If you have an issue with that, you swap into the other group when we arrive." Once the words left his lips he looked around for a moment. "And we are moving again."

The team tightened around the clones, they may only be able to take a single hit but they were fast, able to react in any direction with a quick jutsu or stab, it was defensive positioning, moving like that, the group had no issues making it back to Crusher's group, radioing once they were at the door, Crusher opening it a moment later.

The large man looked at the human and creature being carried by the clones, he waved them all in, if it was ok with Naruto then it was ok with him, for the moment anyway.

"What did you guys find?"

Sarashi moved forward and quickly inspected the human body. "It seems that we were really thrown into the dark here. I want to move further in, there are some things we need to look over, but what we found was, some of these people have animal parts, others have started coming back to life." With Sarashi's words the two clones moved forward, dumping the creature they had been carrying on the ground.

"What the hell is that?" The medic screamed as she jumped back.

"Crusher is this what you shot at?" Naruto asked kicking the body.

"No, this is too small." The large man stated simple.

"Fuck." Cursed the leader, reaching into his vest, and pulling out a thin white stick, putting it into his mouth and lighting it.

"Kurama-san that is very unhealthy."

"So is being a shinobi. This helps me stay level headed when shit hits the fan. Sarashi I want you to take samples from those that are dead and this _thing_. Until we have any results my team will stay here." Naruto took a deep drag, blowing a plume of smoke from his mouth.

Five minutes later the medic came back, a grim look on her face, "It seems that the bodies have some sort of mutation, that creature, is actually a human as well."

Her statement got a few gasps from those around her. "Seems like I wasn't picturing it then." Chuckled the leader, causing a few eyes to turn to him. "The thing had fear in its eyes as I struck, if I had to hazard a guess, it was a scientist at one point. Also did you say the dead were coming back to life?" His cigarette falling to the ground as he butted it out.

"Hai, Kanku is currently watching over the bodies with Kaname, FUCK!" Cursed the medic, she was on the same train of thought as the captain that just left the room, his squad tailing behind him.

"Kanku. Kanku! Come in dammit!" Naruto came to the room Sarashi was talking about, finding it bolted from the inside.

"Hey Taichou, remember how I wanted to fight you?" Kanku's voice came from the other side of the door.

"Yeah Kanku?"

"I think we need to have that fight now. Come inside ok?"

The door opened up slowly, Naruto casually walking in, it closed shut quickly behind him. The lights in the room were dim, in the centre though, he could see Kanku clear as day. "Taichou, this is going to be to the death ok?"

Naruto took a deep breath, giving a small nod. His eyes turning back to those of his clan. "I can only leave once you fall, thats what you set the door up for correct?" Naruto questioned, drawing his tanto, holding it loosely in his left hand, a quick reverse grip, meant for parrying and stabbing motions.

"Ha, I'm not as dumb as I look." His right hand was holding onto his left arm, on his back rested a tanto. "I heard you guys talking over the coms, so I figured why not get two birds with one stone?" The man was able to smile despite the pain running through his body, Naruto gave him a small nod, lightning sparking around his blade and fire appearing on his fingertips.

"I'm not going to take it easy on you, I will be gone full speed from the start."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Taichou." Kanku's smile widened, his right arm moving to take his tanto in his hand.

As soon as he drew the blade Naruto moved, Kanku only just able to block the lightning strike from the tanto, Naruto's fingers coming awfully close to his chest, using his legs the silver-haired man pushed Naruto back, charging forward with long slash, Naruto shifted to the side, seemingly moving right past him.

"Huh, you're even faster than they said." He dropped to his knees his good hand clutching his side as his tanto fell to the ground.

"For putting your team and the mission above your own life, you have earned my respect Kanku. You have done this squad proud, thus I will make this as painless as possible for you." Naruto stalked forward, his tanto still in hand, a few drops of black blood falling from its tip. A strange green glow radiating from his hands, he slowly put it over the man's forehead, a small flash of orange, the sound of a body hitting the ground, the door behind them unlocking.

Naruto stayed looking at the body before him, the people who were stuck on the other side bursting into the room, seeing their Captain standing over the body of Kanku. "What you see before you, is someone who put the mission ahead of their own life. Lets not let his sacrifice be for nothing." Naruto turned on his feet and walked out of the room, his hand reaching into his vest, pulling another white stick and placing it on his lips.

His right hand clenched tight, leaving a trail of smoke as he left.

* * *

**PA: I will admit that I do feel a little bad, about what I did to Yugao, the reason will be shown though, it was not just done because it could be. if you have anquestions or anything chuck us a review, also if you want to see this fic become a harem or not, let us know, you know what to say:D**


	9. Chapter 9

**PA: The feedback from the last chapter was staggering, this will become a harem, it will take time but I am pretty sure the three that are going to be included are pretty clear. 'cookiedo95' voiced how I had planned to have to work almost perfectly, Yugao representing his dark past, Mei for those that he has saved, the only one he missed was Kurenai for the innocence he never had, just wanted to say, good job cookiedo95:D **

**DaDragon562 was also very close in how he described it, only really missing Mei. Good job guys, I am glad to see that you were able to piece it together so well with how little information was given.**

**Mejciu: When he finishes 'becoming one' with Sakura than you will see the true potential hidden in that special little blade, at the moment, I would have to put Naruto at around Minato's levels, both SS ranked ninja. If you are wondering about his listing in Kiri's books earlier, you will find that both of the profiles showed half of his skills, even then one was borderline SS. I agree with the modernisation for Project One, it was strange, thats why I got them to disassemble the Kunai launchers, I don't know if torches exist or not in the Naruto world seeing as we never see them, but there are lights so? But the radio communication is used a few times throughout the series, so its not like a giant leap in technology, it will more than likely be one of the few times I use that though. I find it hard to use the japanese names all the time seeing as I don't exactly have a reliable translator. (By that sometimes I will enter a word that I know for a fact should be spelt one way but it pops up another, at other times it works perfectly.) So I guess for the moment I might just use ones from the series until I can find a good translator.**

**assassin of war: I have not read any of the Nightside books, I may have to have a look into that, are they good?**

**BlackSahdesofRed: I already have a line written out for a future chapter, I will be pointing it out for ya when we get to it:D**

**Zomvee: When I first wrote it, I left off all the positive stuff he said, coming back and reading it I was like ouch, that does seem a little dark to leave alone. I am glad what was added brightened the mood a tad.**

**Xager-the-Chaos-King: The eye clutching, is more a sign of irritation than anything else, the seal is removed, but when ever someone or something really starts to bug my I have this strange need to like play with my right eye, its like a little switch or something that helps me to calm down.**

**Guest: I agree, it is such a good line but I hardly ever see it being used.**

**Breathless Voice: The Harem has indeed been limited to three, I said a max of four, but looking at it now, four would be too hard to write well, three may be pushing it, but I will do my best. By Shinigami division do you mean the Executors? If so then yeah in a way they are, but they mostly handle 'black missions' such as project one (No Naruto was not a part of Executors at that time.) The way they stand out is their 'strange' weapons, such as a scythe, sickles and karma, along with their tattered robes, they will come into play heavily during the Shippuden series.**

**Naruto will be interacting with the other genin teams, but it will happen after the chunin exams, there is a bit to happen before then. Kurenai and Kakashi swapped teams that is the only difference, this is because of Minato seeing how important chakra control is for people like Natsumi and Sasuke, Kurenai being a genjutsu focus would be the best to drill them in that area, Sakura was given to Kurenai to work with and see what she could become. Asuma is still looking over the same team.**

**Also I just had a look for Shiho fics, 14 all up, 9 for romance. I may have a look at her for a story to remove around later on down the track, but I just do not feel like she would be right for this story's Naruto.**

**Cerulean Knight: Naruto will end up finding a new trigger, its going to happen pretty soon, as you may have noticed his personality keeps swapping back and forth at the moment, like he is trying to figure out what he really wants to be. (Itachi's description of Naruto from chapter 3, fits perfectly even though it is spoken by Sasuke.) I honestly hate making Naruto out to be the bad guy, I like making him a badass, but making him a bad guy just feels wrong, but it has to be done for his development.  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I own Doom which Project One is loosely based off.**

* * *

The boat docked at the port, the first thing Mei noticed was, that Naruto was even more distant than before, questioning him about it resulted in him simply dismissing the fact, saying it was nothing to worry about, he would still be able to perform at the needed level, regardless of how he felt.

Zabuza's eyes narrowed on Naruto's back watching as him and the tiger quietly spoke, there was something that the pair were hiding. As long as it didn't affect the job, he would be fine. The main thing that was still on his mind was, how the hell Naruto got his hands on _the _Sakura of legends.

"Naruto-kun, we need to go this way." Mei's voice was soft and kind, not its normal playful one, Naruto rose his head and saw here she was pointing, he gave a small nod and walked down the road. His words from the night before playing through her head over and over, part of her wanted to know how many people he had saved over the years, put that would only tell her how many lives he had taken as well.

Did he purposely answer like that so she wouldn't question him about it? Or was that how he really felt?

He looked so alone, even though he had his tiger partner with him, the grass seemed to shift away from him as he walked, maybe that was just in her mind though. The blade that rested on his shoulder, his clothes, all of them gave off the appearance of a wanderer, his drawn hood masking his face from the world.

"You always did pick the weird ones Mei." Her bandaged partner remarked from beside her.

Mei's eyes never left Naruto's back, was it wise for him to walk ahead of their group? He didn't exactly know where they were going after all. Then like he was acting on her unspoken words, just aiming to prove her wrong, he turned down an unbeaten path, right where they needed to. "I would have you know, I am still as clean as the day I was born." Her statement caused Zabuza to let out a small snort of amusement, earning a tick mark from Mei

His movements lead them straight back to camp, freaking out Mei and Zabuza at how easily he found their 'hidden' base. A group of nin dropped round Naruto, not even paying attention to those who came in after him. "Surrender, we have you surrounded." Called one of the nin, his appearance was scruffy and unshaven.

Mei's mind quickly thought back to the bridge, Naruto's free hand moving, she quickly moved forward to stop him, her hand holding onto his. "He is with me, if you will let us through?" Her words quickly caused the ninja to stiffen and part ways.

"Hai Terumi-sama." They chorused, Naruto found it strange, why did they all move out of the way of Mei? Was she important to them? Honestly though, he just felt better now that he wasn't surrounded by random strangers. Mei still hadn't let go of his hand, it was strange, normally he would have pulled away as soon as he noticed, but now, had he really become weaker like Musashi said? Or has he just become more human?

"Naruto-kun, we're here." Her voice was able to break him out of his musing, looking down at his hand he pulled away slowly, offering a small 'thanks', in return Mei gave him a bright smile. "Anytime Naruto-kun." The pair entered the tent, a group of high-ranking officials standing around a table pointing to a few flags that were pinned into a large sheet of paper. Looking down he remembered seeing these tables, it was basic outline of the enemy's position and their numbers.

He moved around the table observing the camps, one in particular perking his interest. Placing his finger on the flag he smiled, it was next to a set of rivers, meaning it could easily transport troops and supplies, it also meant with the right mind it would be easy to take out. He pointed to the flag, look at those around the table. "I will take this camp tonight, tomorrow morning, it will be yours to use."

All but those that had seen him in action laughed at his proclamation. "You're funny, we have been trying to take that camp for months, you think you can just waltz in and do it in one night? Please do explain, who the fuck you think you are, also how the hell do you plan on doing this." The man who spoke was large, balding with two gray strips running around his head at temple level, joining at the back and flowing down his shoulders, his bulky frame was carefully hidden by baggy blue and silver robes.

"My name is not important, nor is my method, all you need is an outcome, as you said you have been trying for months, what is the harm of giving me one night?" Naruto spoke calmly, his eyes never leaving the board, looking around the rebels hadn't made much ground at all, if anything they were being pushed back.

The man's eyes closed in on Naruto, "This is stupid, but whatever, if you want to go and waste your life fine by me, Mei always did pick the weird ones." The balding man throwing his hands up into the air, no longer caring about what happened. Naruto looked at the board for a few more minutes, if the scaling was correct, he could reach there within two hours, that was traveling at top speed, upwards of an hour to clear out the base, up to four to claim it and rig traps. If he left now he could have it fully prepared, plus have a nice nights rest all by morning.

Naruto turned on his feet, leaving without another word, passing by Zabuza and walking right out of the base, vanishing into the mist that rolled in, Mei walking out of the tent a few moments later, looking at Zabuza with worry on her face. "Where is he heading off to?" Questioned the larger-nin.

"He said he was going to capture Kawano Kuneri ( Rivers Bend). The other generals laughed at him, Naruto though seemed as calm as he could be." Part of her wanted him to come back, to just say he was joking, even though it wasn't in his nature. No one had been successful in capturing that stronghold.

"He'll do it."

"How can you be so sure?"

"He has two S-ranked entries, both listing different skill sets, once is a pure assassination type, the other is a frontline fighter, mix both of them together and what do you get?" His smirk was hidden beneath his bandages, Naruto was rather interesting, even if he was scary as hell.

"His skill set does not matter, its experience that will count here."

"Mei, listen to yourself for a moment, he saved you how many years ago?" Zabuza pointed out to the worried woman.

"Nearly 12."

"Yes, plus he was already in Anbu by that point, just how much more experience can someone get? He will be fine, he wouldn't have said he would do it otherwise." Zabuza walked off leaving Mei to think, never noticing Tai-Long walking beside her.

* * *

Kurenai let out a sigh, while Naruto's intervention saved their lives, it showed a clear difference in skill level, one that seemed almost impossible to reach, this was the reason why her team was currently depressed, they had just left wave and were already making decent progress home, only their was not the usual bright bubbly atmosphere that they normally shared.

Sasuke and Natsumi were not trying to 'one up' each other because of their rivalry, Sakura had even stopped bugging the Uchiha, if only for some time, hopefully she would be able to pull them out of this slump once they reached home.

If not, she may need to call in some back up, to put the group back on their feet. Thinking about the leaf made her think about Naruto, both of them were jounin, meaning they were seen as the same rank, yet the difference was as clear as day and night. She knew there was no contest between who was the strongest jounin.

Even though Kakashi was strong, it was a fight between him and Asuma for second at the moment, she briefly remembered the time at the bar all those years ago, the jump between first and second, that was one she couldn't even fathom.

What really had her interest though was wondering if anyone knew the limit of Naruto's ability at the moment.

* * *

With his Oni suit in place Naruto dropped down to the ground, having already taken out the guards in the watchtowers and those on the gates. An estimated hundred ninja left inside the camp, he could just use his genjutsu to finish this quickly, but there was always a chance that he missed capturing someone in large groups, against bandits it was not much of an issue, they were slow and brutish, easy to read and dodge at the last moment.

Against shinobi though, he couldn't take such risks. This was why he was slowly making his way into the camp, his clones doing the same. Maintaining so many Oni suits allowed him to feel a drain on his chakra levels, it was noticeably, but nothing he couldn't handle, at this rate he could keep it up for another 2-3 hours, if he used jutsu that time would decrease of course. If he dug deep into _that_ jutsu pool, the camp would be unusable. Something he didn't think the rebels would be too happy about.

Swapping to his golden eyes, he could see the chakra levels plummet of the shinobi inside the camp, his clones making quick work of everything in site, thus he decided to start setting up traps, he would be informed if any of the clones were dispelled. Summoning a clone to watch his back as he left the perimeter of the camp, if he started setting traps this close there was a chance the rebels would get caught in them as well.

He finished rigging the forest, nothing would be able to move through that now, not without some type of doujutsu, he was heading back to camp when he got the memories of the clones, one by one, all giving him the same information, the leader of the camp had been unalerted, he was still asleep in his bed, Naruto let his Oni form drop down, he had just been wasting chakra by maintaining it from the looks of things, it was strange at how quickly he had captured the base, was it because of a skill difference, or an information difference.

They had been trying to raid this place for months, or so one of the generals said, Naruto didn't give any time for any type of message to be sent though, that was just how he was taught to work. Could that be what has pushed the rebels back so far, someone on the inside?

He quickly shook his head of the thoughts, he would figure it out later, he made his way through the camp, their information was wrong as well, there had been more than one hundred shinobi, it was much closer to two, bodies littered the camp, ten clones were able to move through, without a single noise. Would all of his fights become like this?

Reaching the tent of the commander, he walked up to the man's bed, placing a kunai against his throat, waiting for the man to wake, when he did, his eyes widened dramatically, see the man was about to call Naruto stopped him. "Your shinobi are all dead. I am going to assume you are the commander, in other words, tell me what I want to know and I will kill you painlessly. If you don't I will slowly turn your brain to mush as I sift through all of your useless memories, eventually finding the ones that I am actually interested in. Sound like a deal?" He saw the mans had move towards a kunai, the funny thing about the sharingan, it can predict the moves of your opponent, thus it was no surprise when captive attempted to take his own life, at least not to Naruto.

It was quickly stopped, the offending hand removed and quarterized. "I will ask you again, anything less than a nod, I start doing this the hard way." Naruto's voice, like he was taught, remained level, no excitement, nor any emotion behind it at all, just flat. This had the effect of causing the captives eyes to dart around in all directions, one of those just happened to look right at Naruto.

Getting all of the information he needed Naruto stood to his full height, walking to the desk in the tent, the sound of the commanding officer sitting in his bed, eating away at his own arms, it would not be long before he killed himself, having been driven insane from Naruto's method of extracting information.

The Uchiha's fingers strummed against the desk, he had learnt something interesting, now he was just waiting, it would not take too long, then it started, the blank white paper started to fill up, a message, saying that a man clad in black would be arriving soon, a smirk settling over his face. Naruto knowing this method of writing wrote back one word.

* * *

_Checkmate._

It was printed clear as day in front of him, he started to sweat, he picked up his things, quickly stuffing them into a bag, the sound of someone clearing their throat froze him in his steps. "Osamu, you seem to have forgotten your parchment." Her voice sounded sickly sweet, turning around his balding head was quickly recognised. The very same man Naruto had a conversation with around the briefing table.

Beside Mei stood Tai-Long, a.k.a instant communication between Naruto and whoever he was near. Scrunched up in her hands was the parchment Naruto had just used to get his message across. The large man tore through the back of his tent, instantly being doubled over and meeting black. "And you were worried Mei." The reason Osamu was now unconscious spoke, shifting the large blade on his back, a smirk hidden beneath his bandages.

"Really, Miss Terumi was worried about Naruto?" The large white tiger questioned, a knowing look on his face.

"You had best believe it Tai."

"Will you two shut up, I was not worried." She bit out, a small blush on her face.

"Sure/Whatever you say." The pair replied, Tai-Long moving forward and taking the large man in his mouth, dragging him through the camp. Gasps came from some, others tried to stop the tiger, all of their efforts were quickly put to rest by the two walking on either side. Haku having already gone to bed, having had enough for one day.

The group quickly approached the command tent, Tai walking through first, throwing the captive onto the ground, he was met with cries of outrage from the other generals, Mei quickly stood beside the tiger, Zabuza on his other side. "Before you go getting the wrong idea, our friend Tai-Long, is working alongside the man I entered with earlier, who by the way, has already captured Kawano Kuneri, where he uncovered that someone had been leaking information to the loyalists." Mei walked forward and placed the scrunched up parchment onto the table, quickly flattening it.

The other generals moved forward each taking a quick look at the paper, deep frowns on their faces. "How did your man find out about this?"

_'Naruto, your, man.' _Those words replaying in her head, over and over, a scribbling sound snapping every from their daze. _"Simple, integration. I do not know if this page is linked to others, but capture complete, the rest of my information will come from Tai-Long. Sincerely, The Black Knight."_ The name was something Mei found interesting, it was a good way to describe the Uchiha though.

"Black Knight Believes someone should destroy the paper, he is well versed with this type of communication, sometimes they can take in the audio of what is around them." The tiger spoke, internally sighing at Naruto's name for himself. Seeing Mei melt the paper with some Lava the tiger sighed again.

"It is safe to move troops to Kawano Kuneri, only along the river bank, the forest and river are both riddled with traps, so much so that anything sort of a dojutsu would be useless as navigation. He said those in the river will be kept until more bases are under your hold, for the moment water can still be acquired from it without any harm to one's person, but should someone want to swim, well, they should strike that notion from their head. If anyone needs me, I will be with Black Knight, I look forward to seeing you all arrive to relieve us." Tai-Long, now finished with his speech gave a small bow, his form vanishing in a cloud of black flames, Zabuza letting out a low whistle at the site.

"Mei, how much is this Black Knight charging?" A tall man spoke, currently having an eyepatch over his right eye, his left a beautiful blue, his hair the same colour, currently he was clad in the traditional hunter-nin garments from Kirigakure.

"We never really talked a price. I don't believe he will be cheap, neither do I believe he will be expensive though."

"I like him, Mei you were able to bring us a man who can get you the job done." Replied the hunter-nin.

_'Mei, a man who can get you done.'_

"Ao, shut up or I'll kill you."

* * *

A few days had passed, Kurenai and her team having arrived back at Konoha, the village was not as exciting as it normally appeared. With a deep sigh they passed through the village gates, walking up the main street to the Hokage tower, no arrogant smirks in place, no playful banter, her team was dead quiet. "How about you guys head to training ground 7, I will meet you there after I make my report." Kurenai got a nod from her team, the three genin walking away without a sound.

As she made it to the Kage's office she saw Kakashi's team leaving, team 8, filled with Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino. Kiba boasting about completing their first C-rank without any issues, saying they should try for a B-rank next time, Kakashi playfully scolding the boy, he saw the look on Kurenai's face and frowned. "Are they all ok?" He questioned.

Thinking about his words for a moment she gave a small nod. "We made it back relatively unharmed, everyone is a little down though, it would have been a complete failure if Naruto hadn't shown up, you would still be waiting for our return." Kurenai spoke in such a way that it would pass over the genin's heads.

Kakashi understood completely though, team 7 would be dead. "Ha, they should've sent us instead right Kakashi-sensei?"

Kurenai's fists tightened, she took a deep breath in and looked at the genin. "Do tell me Inuzuka-san, how would fight an A-rank nin? Along with a B-rank counterpart with Hunter-nin training?" She walked right by Kiba, straight into Minato's office, the blonde Kage turning in his chair to face her.

"Verbal report?"

"I have a written aswell, Team 7 completed the protection detail of Tazuna from Wave. The mission details were clouded and I think a new assessment is needed for the request, including battling two chunin rouge from Kiri, a rouge jounin and a rouge hunter-nin."

Minato's jaw dropped and he looked over Kurenai, she seemed relatively unharmed, but he agreed, the danger of that mission was at least A-rank, not to mention that it was genin that took it, because of the difficulty, he was thinking about maybe making it an S-rank, he gave a quick shake of his head, it was not an S-rank, he remembered some of the reports from Naruto, it would be added to their profiles as a completed A-rank. "How is the team?"

"Depressed, if it wasn't for Naruto, we would all be dead, we were completely outclassed, I must ask Hokage-sama, am I really the best choice to lead this team?" It was something she had thought about since wave, the D-ranks they completed were hardly a test of their abilities. Without outside help, their first real test would have ended up in failure.

"Yes, both Natsumi and Sasuke have their clan abilities to work with, that is something no one but said clan members can help with, Sakura is a perfect mold for you to work with, sans her fangirl like attitude. You are the best when it comes to chakra control, that is something everyone needs, it becomes absolutely vital for Natsumi and Sasuke. Both of them have large reserves, with little to no control, you are greatly helping them in that aspect. I can have someone find some scrolls for your team to work from if you would like? Or if you still feel you are not suited, I can ask for a jounin to take your place." Minato stated calmly, gauging her reaction, he knew Natsumi would be shattered if Kurenai stopped leading the team. Not only that but Sasuke seemed to respect her, at least to an extent.

"I think some assistance would be of use. Honestly, I just needed to hear why I was chosen to lead this team again, thank you Hokage-sama." The raven-haired woman gave a deep bow and slowly walked from his office.

Minato shook his head as she left, skimming over the written report, it says that she sent a request for backup, yet he never received one, his eyes narrowed at the page.

* * *

Kurenai arrived at training ground 7, Natsumi and Sasuke already in a light spar, Sakura hanging from a tree, doing chinups, the blunt ends of kunai attached to the bottom of her feet by chakra. The genin currently sparing jumped away from one another both stringing together a four sign jutsu, their right hands slamming down to the ground.

**"Raiton: Denpō Sekka.**" (Lightning Release: Telegram Flash) The dou roared, paths of lightning erupting along the ground, clashing against one another, creating a large blinding flash, Sasuke was the first to recover from the shock, he sent two kunai forward, Natsumi's hands quickly ran through a set of seals, her head rearing back before flying forward, her cheeks puffed out. "**Futon: Daitoppa.**" (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough.)

It knocked away the kunai with ease, Sasuke, his sharingan active was able to see the wind flying towards him, flipping back int he air, he used the first jutsu he learnt a smile on his face his seals already completed as his body turned to face the wave of wind. **"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu.**" (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.) The fireball was amplified by Natsumi's wind wave, a large torrent was sent back to the blonde, a small 'eep' escaping her lips, quickly replacing herself with a log.

Kurenai called them over stopping the spar, "You both already know your affinities I take it?" Her caused got a quick nod of reply from the two genin.

"I have Futon and Raiton, while Sasuke has Katon and Raiton. Onii-san has been helping us with our Raiton manipulation and giving us a few scrolls with jutsu to work on." Natsumi gave a tired smile, Daitoppa still took so much out of her, sadly it was no where near as strong as the one her father had shown her.

Sasuke clenched his fists, even with the power up from Natsumi's jutsu, his flames were much weaker than once Naruto could breath instantly. "Still wasting his time." The Uchiha muttered out, his gaze towards the ground, his words caused Natsumi to frown.

"Naruto would never think that Sasuke, we all know that, now I want you two to rest, tomorrow we are starting a heavy training program, it will be based around increasing your speed and power, your reaction times and your chakra pools. This will be done for all of you, that includes you Sakura, also we may be having someone join us to help with your training." Kurenai's voice was soft as she looked over the genin, Natsumi's frown quickly turned into a bright smile at the mention of training.

The blonde patted down her blue shorts, removing the small amounts of dirt that they had collected. The right leg of her shorts was riddled with pockets, the same leg was wrapped in bandages, it was mostly for looks, a little bit about reinforcement for her leg, her shoes were the standard blue shinobi sandals. She was wearing a burnt orange coloured tight muscle top, its thin straps going over her shoulders, the bandages around her mid-draft exposed, same as those around her shoulders, the top of her chest bindings just below the line of her top. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a long ponytail, a bang framing either side of her face, bringing out her bright blue eyes.

Sasuke was wearing blue sandals, baggy white shorts and the high collared blue Uchiha clan T-shirt. Sakura was in her red dress, the symbol for her civilian clan on her back. Kirenai was wearing a dress that looked like it was mad of bandages, , her legs from thigh up were tapped, her arms elbow down were the same, her right air covered by a red sleeve, acting as a sort of distraction, it was attached to the mesh armour beneath her short dress, a thorn pattern adoring said dress, her wavy black hair was neither pulled back nor tied, letting it flow naturally.

"Kurenai-nee is right Sasuke, but if you feel that way, we just have to train harder ok? I can ask tou-san if the team can use the training grounds if everyone wants?" The blonde spoke, trying to cheer up her team.

"No need, Naruto placed a seal on the Uchiha training grounds, they are open for use as long as myself or him grants accesses, I assume Kurenai-sensei, has been accepted as well." Sasuke walked forward, his eyes trained on the ground.

"Ok team, tomorrow meet me at Naruto's training ground. Have a decent breakfast, I will be buying lunch." Kurenai looked at her team again, seeing them all nod, small smiles on their faces, it would take some time for them all to get back into the swing of things. With a smile of her own she walked away, looking at the time, Anko would be home soon.

* * *

He found his new clothing, odd. He was standing in front of a mirror, wearing an outfit that Mei had picked up for the 'Black Knight'. Black pants and shirt, both equipped with armoured plates, the plates had a dark gold trim around them, his boots were black close toed shinobi sandals, black metal covering where the openings would be on the standard shinobi sandals. A big flowing black cloak, its collar high and coming to the middle of his ears. A large golden tiger printed on its back, his hair was pulled through the hood, which used seals to black out his face, and keep his eye colour permanently its glowly golden, even when changing eyes.

A hole was in the back of the hood, through said hole his hair was pulled through and platted, held together by three golden clips along its length, reaching the small of his back. Sakura was on the left hand side of his cloak, resting on the inside against his body. "I think it draws too much attention." He spoke, a figure moving on his bed, its head popping up and looking at him for a moment.

"I kind of like it."

"Would that happen to be because you are currently on my back?"

"Maybe." Replied the voice now known to be Tai-Long. The tiger dropped off of the bed, taking a large stretch before stalking forward a few steps. "Mei put a lot of effort in getting that made for you. She understands how we can not become involved here. At least until we are finished. You should at the very least use it to help her out. Plus it is better than that tattered robe you were using before." The white feline stated, tilted its head to the side, examining the outfit further.

"That 'tattered robe' as you called it, is my Executor outfit, it used to go over the Oni suit. It has been with me through a lot, you should watch your words." Naruto stated coldly, moving to the flap of his tent. "Does this actually look good?"

"Hai your Lordship." Bit out the tiger, Naruto slowly closed his eyes in response.

"I know I have been harsh lately, I am just not sleeping well. I apologize for how I have been acting." Naruto pulled the flap up of his tent, walking out and heading to the command tent, a few eyes looked towards him, none attempted anything, just letting him go on his way.

Entering the tent he was greeted with a wolf whistle, courtesy of one Terumi Mei, he looked towards her and nodded, giving a small thanks. "Its nice of you to join us Knight, It has come to our attention that there is very little holding us back anymore, only a handful more bases and we can start to move towards Kirigakure. You understand your job when it comes to that right?" Kunkaru spoke, he was a man, around Naruto's age, he had a bulky figure, short spiky black hair and bright silver eyes, a few scars married his face, he was from a clan of some kind, Naruto had not found it important to remember which, but the man was clad in red robes, a green outline on them.

"Yes, because of who and what I am, It is best that I face Yugara alone, the infiltration team will make sure that I don't have to expend much chakra before reaching the target, at that point I am to lure him away from the village, Terumi Mei and yourself will try to assist with long range jutsu once I have accomplished that. But for now you wish for your Knight to give you some more breathing room... correct?" Naruto looked across the board on the table.

They had definitely made up ground, after exposing the leak in information it was win after win for the rebels, Naruto having already captured three outposts and demolished an enemy camp, the enemy camp he was accompanied with, seeing that sensors may have been present, in the end the worry was for nothing. "Actually no, we wish for our Knight to start formulating a plan of attack against Kirigakure, I was told by Mei about your skills, not enough to reveal who you truly are but enough to give me an idea." Kunkaru gave a small smile to Naruto, who looked over the table again, a large red circle around Kirigakure, motioning to the line Mei stepped forward.

"No one has made it back once going past that line, we assume that is the work of the hunter-nin's but we have no proof. Is there anything I can assist you with?" mei looked over to the Uchiha with hesitant eyes.

"If it is possible, I would like a list of all the shinobi that will be participating in that siege, along with their skills and abilities, only than will I be able to create a plan that has the best chance of coming out the victor." Naruto looked around the room for a few more moments. "I will be sparing with Zabuza if I am needed." With that he turned, leaving the room, Kunkaru looking at Mei for a few moments, Ao as well.

"Don't even bother saying it. Also he isn't weird, he just, thinks differently to us. Plus you can't deny that we need his strength." Her green eyes meeting the other generals, a few looking back at her.

"Do we need him as much as you do?" Silver eyes locked with green for a few moments.

"Without him we would still have a leak of information, not to mention he has captured almost as many bases by himself these past few days as the rest of the rebels combined. He is a strong ally, one we need at the moment." Mei responded back, her eyes scanning Kunkaru, he was a well-known ex-hunter-nin, someone Ao looked up to.

"I never said we didn't need him, I just asked if we needed him as much as you do. In other words, who needs him more, is this some silly hero-worship you have going, or is there actually meaning behind those looks you give him?" His words drilled into her chest, she hung her head a little not actually knowing the answer.

"I am going to go get those files he asked for, if you need me I will be in my tent." Not even bothering to look at the other generals she left.

"Was that needed Kunkaru?"

"Yes Ao, I believe Mei is best suited to lead, ever since Black Knight came though, her attention has been caught on him, not the rebellion. I need her to know where she stands with him." The silver eyed man spoke, bringing his hands up to massage his temples.

"Did you have to put it in such a way though? Mei is still young, she does not see emotions like we do." Ao looked over some reported, moving a few flags around on the table. "I am going to take a few squads, make sure the western sector is still clear." He didn't even wait for a response before walking out.

* * *

"Keep up guys." Kurenai called over her shoulder, her genin a fair few paces behind her, they had been running around Konoha for hours now, this was the start of their training, they were to expend all of their stores, then spar against her while they were exhausted. It was a chunin training method, but it was one her team needed, with the targets on their backs they would need to be as strong as possible.

Completing the last lap they arrived back at Naruto's training grounds, two Anbu standing at the gates. Snake and Neko. "Hokage-sama has asked us to help with your request, I have a Raiton affinity along with a minor Suiton while Snake has one for Doton and Katon. Sadly the only ones with a Futon affinity or knowledge are out of the village at the moment Miss Namikaze."

Natsumi paired up with Yugao (Neko) while Sakura and Sasuke moved over to Snake. Kurenai sat down and started working on her chakra control, the grass next to her being crunched down, letting her know that someone was there. "Kurenai-san, while I understand your devotion to Genjutsu, it is time for you to practice your suiton mastery." Yugao called from next to her.

"Hai. Neko, can I ask you a personal question?" Kurenai looked up to the cat masked Anbu, seeing her stiffen a little.

"My identity can not be questioned, as long as you remember that, I will try to answer to the best of my ability." Oh how much Yugao wanted to turn her down, orders from the Hokage were to help Team 7 and their instructor with any request they had.

"Why did you join Anbu Neko?"

_"You are too young. Why did you join Yugao?" _

It was the same question, from so long ago, questioned by a rival. "Uchiha Naruto asked me the same question when I was his junior partner. My answer now is the same as it was back then, I don't know, to become someone without really becoming anything, I guess, while it seems like a child like view, most of us in Anbu had or have the same sort of reasoning." Yugao gently clutched at her arm, remembering the argument between her and Naruto.

"He replied that, While my reason was good enough, I seemed too clouded to become a legend, much like him. Ironic don't you think? He said we would never get anywhere with that kind of thinking." Yugao gave a small nod of her head.

Kurenai stood up and walked next to the Neko masked Anbu, just within whispering distance. "Not many people with purple hair live in Konoha, the list of them that know Naruto is even shorter, I thank you for what you are doing, even though we hardly like one another. Also that we are fighting for the same man."

"I hardly believe you have anything to worry about there, we got into a fight before he left, I will stay out of your way when it comes to Naruto."

"I'm sorry to hear."

"Don't be, now sit on the water's surface, try to gently flow your chakra into the pond, I will be back in a few minutes to check on you." Yugao moved off and faced Natsumi, showing her against a small waterfall the exercise, the blondes eyes were wide, you were to stand behind the waterfall, channeling Raiton chakra until you bent the raging water away from you.

After the first few attempts the blonde was able to send a few strands of water away from her, nowhere near as much as the Anbu was, moving the entire waterfall was quite an impressive show of skill. Upon reaching Kurenai again, she saw the small disturbances that the genjutsu user was able to create.

"Kurenai-san, you need to make the water dance around you, don't force your chakra into the water, guide it, suiton is all about being fluent, only then can you use it properly." Yugao demonstrated by waving her hand above the water, causing a thing serpent like strand to raise up and moving around her body.

"Sorry, its just that I don't like using Ninjutsu, people always look down on me for being a genjutsu user so I wanted to prove to them, that genjutsu can be just as useful as ninjutsu." Kurenai looked down at the water, moving her hands around and watching the water bend to her will.

"You have a high affinity, you should practice more often. I know you may not like it, but Naruto is the same, a Kenjutsu/Genjutsu user, he still trains his affinities though, he still practises ninjutsu, even taijutsu from time to time. 'You never know what will be needed, while it is good to have a focus don't let your other skills become dull.' He said that to me whenever I asked about it."

Kurenai looked up at the Anbu and nodded.

* * *

**Project One.**

Naruto was looking at the tanto in his hands, watching as the last few drops of Kanku's blood fell, it was a strange sensation the one he was feeling, his explanation for why he wasn't crying like some of the others was simple, he had no tears left to shed.

Soft footsteps approached from his right, out of the corner of his eye he saw white hair, internally he sighed, on the outside he remained the calm and collected Captain for the taskforce. "It kind of eats away at you doesn't it?" Kagemena's questioned caused Naruto to turn to her with a raised brow. "The fact that he will just become a number, there won't be a grave for him, while his actions were heroic, no one will remember him." The Senju leaned against the same wall as Naruto.

"I was once told, that nothing truly dies, not until it has been forgotten. I find myself wondering if that is indeed true, sitting here watching his blood fall from my blade, I know he is dead, yet I still feel like a part of him is with me, is it because his blood continues to fall, or is it because he lives on in us?" Naruto's words made the Senju think, she moved forward slowly and placed a hand over his, holding the tanto steady, pulling a piece of cloth from her top, she wiped the blood onto it, showing Naruto, before moving closer and tying it around his right arm.

"Now you will never have to answer that question yourself ne?" A bright smile on her face, Naruto reasoned that he found it oddly attractive.

Amber eyes met red, she slowly moved in, guiding his tanto out-of-the-way and rested her head on his shoulder. Her arms wrapping tightly around his body. "I am here if you need to talk Naruto." She whispered into his ear, the others were in the next room, it would not be good if they overheard who he really was.

Naruto stood still for a few moments. Not sure of what to do in this situation, as if reading his mind Kagemena spoke again. "When someone hugs you, you're meant to hug back." It came out as a mumble, her cheek pressed against his shoulder, a small pout on her face as Naruto slowly put his arms around her.

The two were more than content to stand there in each others embrace, a Senju and Uchiha basking in a moment of quiet, neither knowing how long had passed before Rusty walked into the room, asking about their orders. Naruto slowly broke apart from Kagemena, his eyes turning to his friend.

"Rusty, you will become part of Crushers team, Kagemena myself and Hanayuki will continue forward. I feel there is still something we are missing, I think it is further in. Our abilities will excell in the corridors, thus making us the best for the job. Understood?" Once again, Naruto had returned to his Captain persona, it wouldn't do well for Rusty to see him doubting things. The support type Anbu nodded and went to inform the others, Hana entering the room moments later.

"I heard we were continuing forward?" The raven-haired female asked, getting a nod from the others. Both already making sure their gear was in position. "Crusher's team were able to find a rough map of the place. Personally, I think we should stay together during the search, we have already lost one member." Hana suggested, Naruto looked down at his hands for a moment.

"Our objective is to clear out this laboratory, I vote we head straight to the end and work our way backwads, while it will take longer, we will be able to keep a mental track of how far left we have to go." The others agreed with the way they would act, doing a final check to make sure everything was in place

_"Nothing to report Taichou, things are still clear, Sarashi thinks she might be getting close to a breakthrough though." _Crusher called, making his timed report.

"Understood Crusher, we are making our way to the back of the labs, will report when we are there."

_"Understood." _

Naruto's nose twitched, there was a strange smell up ahead, one he hadn't smelt before, a mixture of rotting and burnt flesh. It eventually reached the noses of his partners, causing their faces to scrunch up in disgust.

The group entered a large room, a decent sized hole in the middle, Naruto knelt down next to it, the faint sound of groaning at the bottom, shining his torch down he found the smell. "What's this?" Questioned Hana, looking down the large hole, Naruto had told her not to shine the torch down there.

"A holding cell." The Uchiha responded back, almost too quickly.

"How do you know that?" The question came from his black-haired companion, Kagemena already having a fair idea.

"I was kept in one for a time, a beast inside of me wanted to escape, careful the walls are electrified, thats part of the reason for the smell, you really don't want to know the second one, nor what's causing those sounds." Naruto took a few kunai in his hands, channeling raiton chakra through them, giving a quick flick of his wrist and removing the chains from the ceiling, what was down there wouldn't be getting back up.

As the group left, the sounds of bones being broken filtered into Naruto's ears, they had finished cooking the meat it seemed. His group moved quickly through the halls, scouting the rooms, Naruto stopped them out the front of one, even though they weren't at the end of the labs, this was something they needed turned on, that holding cell wouldn't last long on reserve power.

Using his torch to help him move through the dark, Naruto quickly came to the leaver, his head looking around the room a few times before pulling it down, the lights flickering as they tried to turn on, finally a light buzz filled the air, fluorescent lights, how he hated them, they always ended up giving him a headache.

_"I take it you guys found the generator?"_ Crushers voice came across loud and clear, Naruto telling that the lights being on was indeed because of them. _"That's both good and bad news, good cause we can see clearly, bad because that means you guys aren't the ones in the corridor at the moment. Continue the mission, we will hold out here until you get back, we will be switching our coms off, don't want to have any distractions." _

Naruto understood what that meant, a frown quickly went across his face. "If you all heard that, ignore it, we are continuing, we will see them once we are done." He got worried nods from his team, this was the reason he hated being a captain at times.

His group quickly stalked through the halls, quickly approaching the end of the labs, a shadow flew past the entrance of the final door, Naruto's eyes narrowed. Lightning flickered around his arms. "There is something up ahead, I will lead it away while you two continue to clear the room."

The two girls looked at him strangely for a few moments, reluctantly both giving and giving him a nod. **"Raiton: Seiteki Shuushuku.**(Lightning Release: Static Crunch.) **"** Naruto's arms became coated in raiton chakra, bolts of lightning zipping between them, slowly he took a hold of his tanto, its blade turning white from the amount of chakra pouring through it, he walked into the room quickly being engaged in combat by something, a kunai was sticking out of his shoulder, he fought back the urge to smirk.

The Uchiha flipped back, quickly dodging the large arm that had attempted to crush him, he dashed forward, landing a deep gash on the beasts forearm, lightning quickly arching around the once human body, burning the mutants nervous system, or so he hoped.

His raiton jutsus were strong enough to overpower even the most veteran of lightning users, or so he had experienced so far. It was rare that he would have to use both of his tier three affinites in one fight, but this mission had proved to be exempt from any pattern he had found so far.

The beast looked at him with primal gold eyes, intent on ripping him apart, its movement was not slowed or disrupted like he had hoped. Its skin was a dark brown, no retract that, it wasn't skin that was shown but muscle, muscle that was incredibly dense, it was at this moment the creature tore what seemed to be a cabinet from the ground, chucking it across the room at Naruto, the raven-haired Uchiha, quickly dodging. A long drawn out sigh escaping his mouth. His hands quickly flew through a string of handsigns.

**"Katon: Karyū Endan." **(Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet.) Leaping back into the air Naruto blew out a fast-moving, white-hot fire dragon that tackled his opponent through a wall before exploding, engulfing the room in flames that slowly started to crawl into where Naruto was still standing. A large hand came forward and gripped onto the edge of the wall. "You are fucking kidding me." Naruto bit out watching the form slowly walk out, its wounds healing almost instantly, only minor scorch marks remained.

The beast tore forward, charing at Naruto mindlessly, the Uchiha quickly stepping to the side, ripping his tanto through the creature a trail of flames extending from the wound connecting to the tip of his tanto. He grimaced watching just how fast the creature healed. Naruto deepened his stance, his eyes flicking to gold for a moment as he channeled chakra, sending his hands towards the ground he roared. **"Raiton: Shichū Shibari."** (Lightning Release: Four Pillar Bind.)

Four bone white pieces of rock rose from the ground, surrounded the creature he was fighting, small sparks flickered between the rocks before Naruto took a step forward, the sparks of lightning turning into bolts and shocking his target still. Naruto took a deep breath, having used so many high level jutsu in a row was starting to take its toll on the fourteen year old he started molding chakra, this final jutsu would put him at half of _his_ reserves, he would need to rest for some time to get them all back. He pulled his hands together into the tiger seal, slowly collecting his breath.

**"Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu." **(Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique.) Naruto spewed three flaming dragon heads that hovered around his body for a moment, a fourth one slowly slipping from his mouth, a few sparks of lightning zipping along its teeth, the Uchiha slowly stood to his full height, looking at the still trapped creature, sending his hand forward he smirked the dragons flying towards the target, a trail of lightning leaving Naruto's mouth. "Vanish in a blinding light." The dragon heads crashed forwards into the target, large sparks rushing out as Naruto turned away, a blinding white light resounded from the impact sight, a large explosion following right after, rocking the labs, he took a white stick from his vest, lighting it and slowly turning around, the cigarette falling out of his mouth.

The creature, no monster, was slowly pulling itself out of the creator, an arm and leg had been removed, a majority of its skin was burnt to a crisp, cracks now lining the charred thing. "This just isn't right, it ignores all reason."

Naruto watched as the thing crawled towards him, shooting his hand to the ground he frowned deeply, a long blade, its beautiful black and pink blade shimmering against the light. "Sakura forgive me, you should not be used for such battles, but I have no other choice." The Uchiha muttered out talking a few steps forward, a burst of lightning expelled from his back, a long line carved through the floor extending through the creature from head to toe, its body falling in half. Sakura slowly vanishing in a plume of cherry blossoms, falling back into Naruto's right forearm, a pink seal appearing before vanishing.

Naruto walked forward, he was quickly met with the worried eyes of Kagemena and Hanayuki, both felt the explosion earlier, around them was a group of redead dead bodies. "Sorry I took so long, the creature did not know the meaning of die." He let out a small sigh.

"Thats one room cleared Kurama, only another 10 left."

"If I have to fight something like that again, I will need to take a break, I am running at half capacity." He got a nod of understand and shock, the reserves of 'Oni" were said to be immense, Hana looked at Naruto for a few moments, this was definitely the most exhausted she had seen him.

"Well Captain, lets keep moving, Crusher is waiting for us to return." The white-haired Senju spoke, a smile on her face as she spun her tanto around on her hand.

* * *

**Present Time**

Naruto's eyes slowly opened, in the end, the dream had not ended too badly, but he dreaded what happened next time he had it. He got up and bathed in the nearby river, today was the big day, using his strong katon affinity he heated up the water around him, allowing for a nice refreshing bath, bringing the water up and letting it fall over his features, he heard the sound of someone else moving through the water, slowly putting his hand in he sent out a small electric discharge. "I do not take kindly to people trying to sneak up on me, state your intentions or the next one won't be so small." His voice was ever calm, he quickly put a genjutsu over his face to hide it , slowly turning around to face the intruder.

"Really Naruto-kun, that was an 'invigorating' way to say hello." A small pout on Mei's face was able to be seen, the rest of her body already beneath the water. "Also here I can scream your name as loud as I want, I told the camp I would be bathing, also that I didn't want to be disturbed."

Naruto let the genjutsu fall and looked at Mei with glowing red eyes. "And I assume the fact that I was already here was purely coincidence?"

A playful look came onto the green-eyed vixen's face, "I had no idea that you would be here, honestly."

"Mei, the Sharingan can tell when someone is lying, I am positive that is a widely known fact. What is your real reason for being here." Naruto pulled a smooth stone from the river bed, running his hand over it heating it up gently before using it to rub the dirt and grime from his body.

The rebel swam closer to Naruto, feeling the water heat up immensely as she got close, almost like a hot spring, she had honestly never thought about using her katon affinity for such things. "I came here to talk to you. Here let me do your back." She held out her hand, waiting for him to put the stone in place, reluctantly he did, having learned by now, Mei could become quite forceful if needed, plus it was the first time he had spoken to her in a few days.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Naruto asked, feeling her pull the stone gently across his shoulders.

"Naruto, I think I might have a small crush of sorts on you." Nervous, her voice clearly showed how she felt.

"Now is not really the time to talk about these sorts of things Mei."

"I know that you already ha-" She was cut off when Naruto turned around, his face devoid of any emotion.

"I'm not with anyone, what I mean is, what you are doing now, is putting more things on my mind when I am about to be infiltrating and attempting to assassinate a Kage, who mind you has a bijuu sealed inside of him." He slowly and gently took the stone from her hand, motioning for her to spin around, causing her to blush but do so.

Once again he heated up the rock, gently rubbing down Mei's back, her hand holding her long hair out of the way. "Gomen, I didn't think of it like that." She bit down lightly on her lip, a number of scenarios flying through her head.

"Its ok, you have already started talking, so you may as well finish, afterall you put in such an effort to get me alone." He whispered the last part next to her ear, watching her body shiver.

"Do you even know what you are doing to me Naruto-kun?"

"Yep, I am applying both Raiton and Katon chakra natures to your body in order to relax your muscles as much as possible, I thought you may enjoy this, was I wrong?" He didn't get a verbal response from his question, instead he got Mei leaning back against him, looking up into his eyes, her hand raising to cup his cheek.

"Naruto-kun, I am going to do something that I have wanted to for some time now, I hope you want hate me for it." Her words caused him to raise a brow as she spun around and placed her lips against his, her arms wrapped tightly around his chest. _"When someone hugs you, you're meant to hug back." _Her words ran deeply through his head, his arms slowly wrapping around Mei's lieth form, his lips parting and letting her tongue enter.

The pair slowly parted, Mei's blush going to newfound levels as she felt something brush past her stomach, it was at this point she remembered that they were both standing here as naked as the day they were born, embracing one another in the middle of a river. "Ahh so you finally noticed?" His mocking voice came causing her to glare at him for a moment, the small smile on his face was enough to break away any anger she had.

"I have to get ready for later on." Naruto stated, his arms slowly letting go of Mei, she held onto him tighter looking up at his eyes.

"Come back safe ok? Also remember myself and Kunkaru are waiting for you to bait him out."

"I'll try my best. Plus I wouldn't forget something as important as that, I will try my best to take him down before that is needed though." Naruto took a few steps away from her before his form started to vanish in a genjutsu, seemingly blowing away into numerous Sakura Petals. One landing in the palm of Mei's hand. Her other hand lightly came up to touch her lips, a small zap was felt from the action, a smile spread wildly along her face.

"Even your kiss is dangerous eh Na-ru-to-kun?" She purred out to herself.

* * *

**PA: Yes a little bit of Mei and Naruto fluff, some of you might be going, that was unexpected, but you got to remember, Naruto is going off to fight against a Kage jinchuuriki, that is a battle no one really expects to walk away from. Ok one final thing before the end of the chapter, polls for the YugaoXNaruto fic close on the 28th of January. I really couldn't be bothered waiting another month.**


	10. Chapter 10

**PA: I really don't have much to say here unlike normal, umm but I guess this was actually a pretty difficult chapter to write at parts, some hard choices needed to be made, but it should all work out in the end. Also many of you will be happy with this chapter mostly for the little part at the end.**

**Mejciu: I hope you enjoy this one just as much, the Uchiha armour will be his most prominent clothing, sometimes he may just wear a coat or cloak over the top, the japanese names are a bit of a pain, but I have to agree it does give a much better feel to the fight.**

**Codegeassfan23: Kurenai kind of sums up everything Naruto wished he could be, a normal jounin, oblivious to the dark side of the shinobi world. Her choice as team 7's instructor is because Minato had seen how affect Naruto was when he focused on his chakra control, thus he is hoping for the same results from Natsumi, Naruto is helping to train Sasuke in the Uchiha clan's techniques meaning that the chakra control lessons he gets from Kurenai will help improve the control he has over his jutsus power. Sakura well I am still unsure as to what I will do with her, any training she receives will be an improvement though.**

**Cerulean Knight: Yeah Naruto is a funny character, he doesn't exactly seem like the type of person who can just be switched to the bad side so to say. Sakura's story will come in after the Chunin exams, or maybe during the training month. Yeah I meant flashlights, but it doesn't really make sense that they wouldn't have them, I mean they have wireless communication devices but no flashlights? I really think they need to get their things sorted. Yeah I will be honest, don't bother reading Shrouded in Twilight or Shadow Dwellers, I bombed out big time writing those, while I still like the idea and concept behind the stories, I really need to go back and do a re-write. The new upcoming stories though are something that should be interesting, I mean with the way the pole is at the moment, it seems that I will be writing the Bleach/Naruto _and_ Fairy Tail/Naruto.  
****The ideas behind them are a little uh different, but if I am able to portray the characters right, they should turn out to be good stories (hopefully).**

**Also there is a small line of foreshadowing in this chapter, those of you who are up to date with the Manga will know what I am talking about hopefully.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I own Doom Project One is just loosely based around that title.**

* * *

Walls exploded out around him, embers flying through the air, the siege had begun.

Naruto slowly stood to his full height, four Kiri-nin dropping down around him. "Knight-san, Is it time to move?" One questioned bowing to Naruto.

With his outfit in place Naruto nodded taking a step forward. "We should make haste."

"Remember to leave the fighting to us, no matter what happens, you need to save your chakra for your fight." Naruto gave a grunt in response to the statement, he would not forget something so quickly.

His team quickly moving through the shadows, shuriken and kunai raining down around them, not a single one coming close to Naruto, the job of the Kiri-nin around him was to make sure he didn't lift a finger, at least until he had to fight Yagura. His group made record time through the village, quickly approaching the Kage tower.

Naruto let his eyes narrow, it was much to easy to arrive here. His suspicions were confirmed when a group of jounin level-nin dropped down around them, one of his guards looked to him for a moment. "We will hold them here Knight-san, please continue your mission."

_"The mission always comes first!"_

_"Taichou, this is going to be to the death ok?"_

_"We will hold out here until you get back,"_

Flashes of the dreaded mission played through his head, Naruto grimly nodded to his escorts, moving quickly into the tower, none of the jounin even attempting to stop him.

The tower was surprisingly empty, his guard stayed raised. He came to a long hallway, the door at the end opening seemingly inviting him further into the Kage's den, with caution he proceeded, the final door slowly creaked open, in the middle of the room, standing ontop of a small pound was his target, childlike appearance, white hair, pink eyes with a scar under his left. The childlike Kage was clad in mesh armour, a green cloth sprawled across his shoulders, a grey one piece like suit was over the armour, a staff on his back. "They sent you? I should have figured, their 'secret weapon' The Black Knight. Tell me, does Konoha know you are here Uchiha Naruto?"

Naruto pulled his hood down, quickly sealing the outfit away, leaving him wearing his Uchiha armour. He cracked his head to the side, pulling out the three gold clips letting his hair fall naturally. "You have no idea how uncomfortable that outfit was, our bijuu are resonating, their memories slowly being inflicted upon our own. It was no surprise that you knew who I was." Naruto walked forward, standing on top of the water, Yagura's control over it was amazing, the Uchiha almost found himself lost in watching it whip around him.

"Have we had enough talk now?"

"I guess we have, for the moment anyway." As soon as the words left Naruto's mouth he was forced to dodge backwards, a large tendril of water crashing down where he just was. In a display of his acrobatic abilities, Naruto sprung to the side, rolling onto his hands before leaping into the air, narrowly avoiding the incoming spears of water, his blood red eyes darting around the room, taking in all of the positions, this the environment was clearly both with and against him.

Being completely surrounded by water Naruto smirked, his hands weaving through signs faster than most dojutsu could process **"Raiton: Idai na Satsugaidenrixyuu." **(Lightning Release: Great Murdering Current.) Slamming his hands into the water a slip of lightning flowed out of his mouth, sparking the beginning of his jutsu.

* * *

Mei looked up as the large explosion sounded, seeing the Kage tower now in flames, smoke billowing from the gaping holes as water poured down its sides. Two blurs quickly moving from the smoke, dashing across the landscape, she bit down on her lip. "Why isn't he heading to the agreed point?" Looking around she saw Ao and Kunkaru thinking along the same lines, both giving a small nod, giving chase to the fast moving objects.

A white and black blur stopped them in their tracks. "You will only get in the way if you head over now. Knight needs all of his attention on the fight, he doesn't need the distraction of trying to protect you ningens." Tai-Long spoke harshly, his long tail whipping around behind him, Mei attempted to move forward, the tiger leaning down and giving a small growl.

"Let us past Tai, we can help him."

"No, I will stop you with force if I need to."

* * *

Yagura panted on top of the lake, that raiton hit him hard. Looking down at his left arm he noticed the amount of burns it now carried, even after reflecting it back, it seemed some still managed to crash into him. He was brought out of his musing as Naruto dropped down in front of him, a neutral expression on his face. "Didn't anyone ever tell you not to use a jutsu above your level?" The Uchiha's tone was one of mocking.

"Your damned bloodline is all that has kept you alive UCHIHA!" Taking his staff into his hands, Yagura started spinning it forward. Sending lines of coral forward, the attack caught Naruto completely by surprise, managing to scrape against his armour, his eyes narrowed on the childlike Kage.

"The reason I am still alive, is because of the pure difference in our power, you are an ameture, trying so despretly to hold onto your throne, wiping out all that could pose a threat to it." Naruto took a slow step forward, lightning coursing around his right fist.

"I will show you a difference in power Uchiha." The white haired man spoke coldly, three tails coming from his back, his form hunching down.

**_"Kit, he has entered second state."_ **Kurama spoke from within Naruto, the Uchiha nodded his head in understanding.

"Let us hide in the shadows, ONI!" Naruto shouted out, his black suit quickly rushing over his body, if the child wanted to bring out inner power, so would Naruto. **"Raiton: Seiteki Shuushuku." **(Lightning Release: Static Crunch.) With his arms and legs now covered in lightning, Naruto felt very little resistance with his movements, plus the added speed boost from his Oni suit helped, Yugao was just barely managing to keep up with the armoured Uchiha.

Every now and again the pair would part, one of them being knocked back, skidding across the water for a little. Naruto bumped his fists together, the lightning around them growing in intensity. He quickly moved forward across the water, lightning arcing from his back, propelling him even faster, waves of water splashing around from the power the two combatants were radiating. A solid right hook landed on the scared side of Yagura's face, a resounding crunch splitting through the air. Naruto did not relent, a quick elbow smashing the childs head down to the lake, a lifting kick to bring him up into the air, where Naruto showed him the power of his lightning, combo after combo taking the duo higher. The pressure getting to an almost unbearable level, Naruto give one final push, placing himself above the current Mizukage.

Looking at the clouds around him, he knew he would be fine for this technique, raising his right hand into the air, a sad smile covered his masked face. **"Kirin. **Be extinguished in the thunder clap." Bringing his hand down a large dragon tore through the air, carrying the young kage with him to the lake, exploding on impact. A sigh left Naruto's mouth before he noticed something.

_**"KIT WE'RE FALLING!"**_Screamed his tenant, Naruto was already well aware of the fact, his body descending towards the water at a rapid pace, because of his height, he was able to see a large shadow beneath the water, it broke the surface.

"Why do I always get the people that just won't die."

Yagura had fulling transformed into the sanbi, which was heading straight for Naruto, the Uchiha was caught in the air, unable to move fully, watching as the beast opened its jaws. He brought his right hand down, in an attempt to summon Sakura, it proved to be useless, It was strangely odd he had never had an issue summoning her before. "I am not going to be breakfast to some stupid turtle." His left side exploded with fire, pushing him off to the side, his body clipped the side of the beasts mouth causing him to gasp in pain, pushing off with his legs he headed for the water, blood flowing freely from his left side.

_**"Kit!"**_

_"Kurama, I know ok, please, I am trying to work here, just stop the bleeding." _Naruto bit back at the fox, his right hand currently holding where his left arm should be, he looked up to see the turtle on its return trip. _"Kurama, remember that technique you banned me from working on?" _

**_"Naruto don't, I doubt your body can keep up at the moment."_**

_"Kurama, if we don't stop him, who will?" _

The large fox grunted, quickly diverting his attention to reduce the rate at which Naruto was losing blood, the black haired Uchiha dashing across the water, making some distance between himself and the sanbi. His Oni suit falling away to reveal his broken and battered Uchiha armour, blood running from the corner of his mouth. His right hand was a blur, running through the insane amount of seals he needed for this technique, not to mention having to add more because he was using one hand, meaning he had to mold it inside his body.

Naruto had to channel large amounts of chakra to his feet just to stay afloat, the Sanbi returning to water displaced much more than he had originally thought. The beasts head reared above the water, a heavy concentration of chakra forming in front of its mouth, slowly compacting into a dark ball.

Naruto having finished his hand seals breathed into his hand, a large green/white rod appearing, its form wavering from the winds around it, slowly but surely it formed into a large spear. **"Kamino Genshi no Namida." **(Atomic Tear of God.) Naruto shuffled forward, building a large amount of momentum , taking a final step he threw the spear, putting his entire bodyweight behind it.

It shot of like a rocket hurtling straight towards the Sanbi, a bright green streak left in the sky, the Sanbi's attack having just finished charging as Naruto's spear impacted, pushing the ball back into the beast's insides, its thick shell, slowly falling away, its stomach, rupturing as chakra desperately tried to escape, finally in a big flash, it was all over.

* * *

Tai-Long frowned as he looked at the people before him, having just received word from Naruto what he was planning. "Naruto's next jutsu will be the end of the fight, one way or another, you can not stop it in time so, you can pass."

Without even needing to be told again Mei shot past the tiger, not even noticing as he burst into black flames. Mei tore through the trees, able to hear the loud roar of crashing waves. She appeared watching as Naruto pulled back to throw the spear, against the Sanbi. She had never seen a bijuu so close before, she was scared even when it's attention wasn't aimed at her, she could only wonder how Naruto must feel, the turtle's attack being pushed back inside of its body, the look of fear present on its face.

The Sanbi lurched forward, its stomach buckling under the pressure before finally giving way, exploding upwards in a beautiful green light that pierced the clouds that loomed above, from the corner of her eyes she saw Naruto flying through the air, her body moving at speeds she didn't know she possessed, barely reaching him in time before he crashed into the ground, Mei attempted cushion his fall, completely forgetting about the fact that he weighed more, plus he was wearing armour and currently flying through the air, her body was tossed aside like a ragdoll.

Naruto's momentum too great for her alone to contain, his travel was slowly broken, along with the many trees that slowed him to a stop. Mei hurried to where he landed, almost falling to the ground in shock. His body lay still inside the trench he had caused. It was only now that she noticed his missing arm, running down to slowly pull him out. His armour was near destroyed, barely holding onto his body, blood slowly oozing from his wounds, his 'flight' having opened up his arm again.

She rested him on her lap, sitting there, unable to do anything, she didn't have any medic training, Naruto was the one that did. If only their positions were reversed, she knew he would be able to fix her in no time. Ao and Kunkaru both arrived later, grimacing upon seeing the scene before them, thankfully, they had thought to bring a squad with medic training, they quickly removed the man from Mei's hold.

Said woman did not agree nor make it easy for them to take him away, put it happened nonetheless, Naruto lay on a stretcher, four sets of green hands hovering over his body. "He is going to be unstable for quite some time, moving him now could very well kill him. Also, without his arm, there is no way we can attach it."

"Those not working on healing him scout for the missing arm." Mei ordered, the ninja gulped but moved out quickly.

"Mei we all saw that explosion..."

"I don't care Ao, if there is a chance, thats enough. How is the fight going?" She asked nervously, her eyes not leaving the form of the Uchiha before her.

"With Yagura out of the way, we should be entering the final stages." Ao stated clearly, giving a small bow.

"Ao, can I trust you to watch over the medics and Naruto?" Her question caused many to open their eyes wide, thinking that she would stay by the side of the Uchiha.

"I can, but wouldn't you prefer to?"

"Hardly, how could I live with myself If I let Naruto-kun fight all my battles for me?" She raised her eyes up and looked at Ao, giving him a small smile.

"I can do just that Mei."

"Thank you Ao. Naruto-kun, don't you dare die on me. Kunkaru lets go." Mei took off into the trees, the silver-haired man behind her. Ao slowly sat down, looking towards the Uchiha as the medics frantically fought to keep him alive.

"It would be best if you lived Naruto, the world needs people like you, those that aren't afraid to do what it takes, no matter what it may cost themselves." His words distracted the medics, their heads slowly turning to the man. "Get back to work, you lot are just going to let a hero die because I preach a few wise words?!" Ao roared at them, putting a jump back into their routine. A loud roar split through the air, it was from far away but the presence it gave off was frightening.

* * *

Naruto slowly sat up, instantly noticing that the grass he was laying on was much softer than any he had ever felt. Sakura petals danced in the air around him, "Where am I? Did we win?" Those were the first questions out of his mouth, ignoring the fact that someone was tapping their foot impatiently behind him.

"Oi,Oi,Oi,Oi. Get off your ass Naruto!" The black-haired Uchiha spun around quickly, completely forgetting that he was still injured and down a limb, in the end he managed to tumble splendidly along the ground. "Do I seriously have to do everything for you?" She stalked forward, picking him up and placing him shakily on his feet, his form swaying from side to side.

"Who are you?" Naruto questioned, her strange waist length pink hair along with her black robes, were not enough of a connection for the Uchiha at the current time, her silver eyes narrowed on him and she frowned deeply, such a frown looked so out of place on her porcelain white face.

"16 years and you don't even know me, what the hell is wrong with people these days."

"16 years... Sakura?"

"Bingo baka, some great partner you are, don't even know me when I appear for you in a time of need." Seeing that her partner was about to fall over again she moved forward, chucking his good arm across her shoulders, tightly holding onto his waist so as to stop his futile attempt at overcoming gravity.

"Time of need? Why didn't you help me against the Sanbi then?" Naruto nearly roared at the girl, sadly his body would not let him do such an act.

"Simple, you were panicking, I don't want some loser who can't keep their head in battle touching me, but you made it through and here we are, good job by the way." She flicked her long hair out of her face, hefting Naruto across to a group of chairs, gently putting him down. "Do you want some tea or anything?" Sakura motioned to her hands where she made a small kettle and a few cups, Naruto gladly nodded, reaching forward to take one only to have his hand slapped away.

"What was that for?" Naruto questioned looking at the hand she had hit away.

"You have no manners, when a lady pours tea you wait for her to give it to you, don't just go snatching things." the pinkette gave him a deadpanned expression.

"This has got to be the stupidest thing I have ever done." Naruto moaned, trying to bang his head on the table, only to find a pillow where he had attempted the action.

"Jeez your telling me, here I am being all nice, offering you drinks helping you to walk, yet you can't even show something as simple as manners, you haven't even said thank you yet."

"Why would I thank you? All you have really done so far is scold and insult me."

"For helping you walk, are you even listening to me Naruto?" Sakura groaned out, slowly pushing his tea across to him.

"This is tiring, how do I get out of here, there is a fight going on outside if you haven't noticed." Naruto looked across to the pinkette who seemed more than content to just sit there and drink her tea.

"Oh you can't leave until we are done talking, also the fighting is over, some lady called Mei is just sleeping beside your hospital bed now, she is pretty, are you two dating?" The pinkette questioned innocently. Seeing the look in Naruto's eyes she sighed. "Of course you aren't, you are still trying to repent for what you have done, has anyone ever told you how much of an idiot you are?"

Naruto slowly rose his brow, looking across at the woman that claimed to be his sword. "No they haven't, also how would you know what I am or not doing?"

Sakura tightened her fists, slamming them down on the table and leaning in close to Naruto, a deep glare on her face. "BECAUSE I AM A PART OF YOU IDIOT! FUCK! I THOUGHT YOU WOULD HAVE NOTICED BY NOW!" The two started at one another, Sakura taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself. Naruto's incredible ability to enrage her was ever present at the moment.

"Ok what do you wish to talk about then?" Naruto breathed out with a sigh, while this was a new experience, it was beyond tiring.

Sakura let out a small groan, letting her head strike against the table. "I want you to remember, remember the words you spoke so long ago. Thats why I have been making you relive your changing point. You have lost your drive, the thing that kept us bound together, we can not fight together like this."

"What do you mean, I have been able to use you fine, your legendary ability to cut anything is still working fine." Naruto questioned, looking across at Sakura the pinkette still had her head against the table.

"Wow, you can use a sword to cut things, isn't that something special." The black clad female bit out, not bothering to look up. "Naruto, you are an idiot, I was honestly hoping you would figure out how to talk to me by yourself, but no, you became focused purely on your own skills, never wondering if I could be something more than just a sword." A pang of sadness ran throughout her words, her finger tracing a circle on the table.

"I understand, you are not just some standard blade, I can quite clearly see otherwise." Sadly Naruto was unable to hear the tone of her voice, his remark came across as sarcastic to the pinkette.

"Well what am I then smartass?" Upon not getting a response from her wielder she sighed, slowly lifting her head to look at the Uchiha. "I'm a demon blade you jackass, my kind has been around since before humans walked the earth, we are ancient, self-repairing blades of incredible strength. The fact that I seem to have been branded with an idiot for a wielder saddens and infuriates me greatly. Zabuza has a better relationship with his sword than you do, his is just a piece of special metal, pelted with chakra, I am made from about the same amount of youki as the Ichibi."

Naruto slowly nodded his head, not understanding what she was saying at all. "So you're ageless?"

"Is that really all you took from that?"

"Sakura you are going to have to forgive me, I think I may have been given something to help with the pain, my mind is all muddled and unclear. Gomem Sakura." His words caused her silver eyes to widen, her body slowly breaking apart and forming in his hand again. "Sakura? What's happened?"

"I liked hearing that from you, so now you will have to say it whenever you wish to summon me." As she was speaking the pink seal on Naruto's forearm came to life, its formula rearranging its shape, finally settling on a petal, the pun was not lost on the Uchiha.

"So to summon you, I just say Gomen Sakura, correct?"

"Yep." Replied the blade in his hand.

"We still aren't cool are we?"

"Not even close, you are a royal asshole, a pain in the ass and even a loser at times, but for now, I will still work with you." Her words caused Naruto to lower his head, remembering Yugao running away from him, tears rolling down her cheeks. Seeing the expression on his face Sakura let out a small sigh. "Hey Naruto, I didn't really mean it."

"No you are right." He was never able to ask the most important question. With a new fire burning in his eyes Naruto looked at the sky around him, its form slowly changing.

"You ready for this?"

"Lets make this the final time. It is a nightmare that I don't care to keep repeating." With a hesitant nod Naruto strode forward, deep black tendrils exploding from the air and wrapping around him tightly. Sakura falling to the ground as Naruto vanished, slowly transforming back into her human form.

"Its up to you to remember Naruto, please return to what you were." Her eyes closed slowly, her right hand extending into the air, slowly breaking apart into her namesake.

* * *

**Project One**

Naruto's team tore down the halls, they were completely exhausted, but the laboratory was clean. The piles of bodies became more and more numerous as the reached closer to where Crusher's squad was.

His black hair flowing behind him as he crashed into the room, Sarashi, Kaname. Both dead, their necks broken, chests torn open. Naruto bit back the feeling behind his eyes. His choice had lead them to this. His feet felt so heavy, lifting them across the ground, searching for his long time friend. "Rusty? Rusty you ok?"

The sound of heavy breathing alerted him to someones presence, quickly he moved across to see the pained face of Rusty. "Hey*cough* Naruto, you missed one hell of a party here." Naruto laid the man down on the ground, his hands glowing green as the moved across his body. Rusty weakly brought a hand up and pushed them away.

"Rusty you are going to be ok, just let me finish healing you." Naruto pleaded only for the slim man to give a small smile.

"I'm already dead, but atleast I was able to give the others time to escape right?" The boy finished with a rough cough, Naruto didn't even look back, he stayed looking at his friend.

"I haven't seen them so you did a good job Rust." Naruto lied, the action caused Rusty to frown.

"You never could lie to me, in the end I guess it was hopeless after all, oi Naruto, make sure you look after your squad, for me yeah?"

Naruto could only nod to his friend, a small trail of tears broke through his defenses falling down and splashing against the boys face causing his eyes to go wide, slowly he broke out into a small pained laugh. "Never thought it would rain inside. I guess I must be seeing things eh Naruto?"

"You must be Rust, I promise though, I will get them both out of here."

"I know you will keep it Naruto, after all, a Uchiha never goes back on his word right?" They both chuckled weakly, Naruto sucking his lips tight and nodding.

"Yeah Rust, we always keep our word."

"After you get out of here, try living for yourself for a while, maybe take a little break, work on your jutsus a little, you know, the fun stuff."

"I already know what to live for Rust, thanks for everything, friend." The pulse had left the body in his arms, Naruto took a deep breath closing the eyes of his friend, slowly putting him down on the ground. A loud crash ran through the room, a hulking behemoth walking through a cloud of dust.

"Hey Taichou, it looks like the mission is complete, why don't we go, report in?" Crusher's voice had gotten deeper, his figure larger, his skin darker.

"Sadly Crusher, I was asked to make sure nothing escaped, you have indeed become something... more than Crusher." Naruto tried to summon lightning chakra around his hands, only to find his reserves were next to empty.

Crusher clenched his fists, the shuriken launcher being crushed under the pressure, leaving the projectiles in his hand. "I told you this junk is useless, in a battle between shinobi, it is skill and power that will prevail, not technology, looking at it now though, we are both out of chakra, so what are you going to do Taichou?"

Naruto let a smirk spread over his face. "You're right, _I_ am out of chakra, you simply gave yours up, but that won't stop me from keeping my promise." Naruto tightened his fists, looking across at Crusher, seeing a smirk slowly spread across the mans face.

"You mean to keep these two alive?" The large man bending down and picking up to bodies, tossing them across the room without a care for their safety. "They are still alive, but if you lose, I will have some fun with them eh?"

"You're a monster, were you always this way Crusher?" Naruto spat, his eyes darted over to the two girls, his thoughts in turmoil.

"You need a monster to kill a monster Taichou, didn't your parents ever tell you that? Oooops." With a small chuckle the man dashed forward, rearing his fist back and sending it down at the unmoving Naruto, the young Uchiha rose his hand catching Crusher's strike, the floor buckling under the pressure.

"Kurama, he is a monster that you can't even compare to, yet even he has his standards, now you shall fall prey to _his_ power, as I said, _I _am out of chakra." Naruto brought his free hand up, pulling it back and launching it forward, Crusher's body bending from the force as he was sent flying back. "I am going to need you to keep this coming Kurama, I won't be able to beat him with my reserves."

_**"Give him hell Naruto, show him what we are when we work together."**_

The words of the large fox filled Naruto with confidence, an orange aura flying around the Uchiha, burning the ground beneath him, he slowly strode forward, watching Crusher pull himself out from under some rubble. "Is this what makes you so fearsome Taichou?" Crusher snapped his head to the side, the sound resonating through the room.

"Hardly, this is the second time I have had to use this power, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth, but then again, watching loyal Anbu being turned into monsters that no longer care for their comrades tastes much worse." Naruto let his eyes close, flames exploding from his body, slowly reeling in and covering his form, like a flaming avatar.

"Show me what you got Taichou, I ain't going to make this easy." The monster charged forward, intent on striking Naruto down, the Uchiha was completely un-phased by the action, at the last moment he moved his body to the side narrowly dodging the strike.

"Crusher, I just thought I would let you know, you will die here, I will walk away. Taking my team to the surface and escaping this cursed place. This is because I have a promise to hold onto, a new lease on life, I WILL PROTECT MY NAKAMA!" Faster than he had ever moved, Naruto slammed a fist into the beast before him, lifting him into the air, vanishing and appearing above him his leg raised into the air, bringing it down with blinding force sending the creature to the ground.

Naruto appearing above the man without giving him a moments rest, his flame covered body pounding Crusher into the ground, deeper and deeper, with a sickening roar to the heavens Naruto's hands moved to the creatures head, gripping it tightly, snapping it right around before tearing it off completely, holding the head in his hands he slowly stood up, his form staggering as the fire died down, he dropped the skull to the ground, bringing his foot down on top of it, the final parts of the flames leaving a moment later, fragments of bone were able to be seen in Naruto's hands and feet.

Nevertheless he dragged his body forward, picking up Hanayuki and Kagemena, looping their arms around his neck as he carried them forward, his arms felt like they were about to drop off, but that didn't matter right now. He would keep his promise to Rusty.

They made it out of the labs, all he had left to do was report in, he heard voices on the other side, he pressed his communicator on with his shoulder, sighing in relief as the ramblings became loud, putting strain on his hearing, at the moment though, it was gladly accepted. "Captain Oni reporting in, mission complete."

_"H-hai Taichou, we will open the doors right away."_

"We're going to need a med-" Naruto fell forward, his body no longer able to keep up, he saw the door slide open and blurs of faces around him. _'I did it Rusty, just like I said I would.' _ He gladly let the darkness take over, he was too tired to resistance any more.

* * *

Beeping, sterile and bright lights. Naruto groaned as he slowly came to, figuring he was in a hospital, no other place would call all of this crap helping people. A tall blonde haired figure was standing at the edge of his bed. Naruto's eyes slowly became clearer allowing him to make out the form of his father.

"Captain." The Hokage stated giving a small nod of the head.

"Hokage-sama." Naruto replied back just as quick, even though his throat was dry, causing it to come out much softer.

"The events that you remember, never happened, forget about them. This disaster is to be labeled Project One. A Black Op, the majority of its contents will be removed, so it is best if you just forget it." The serious tone in Minato's voice was one not many would question.

"Why that name?"

"There was only one survivor. They didn't make it Naruto." Seeing the defeated look on his sons face Minato left, he didn't know how to comfort him, nor did he feel it was his place, the two had grown so distant that he would probably cause more harm than good.

Naruto's fists clenched tightly balling the bedsheets up as he slammed his hands into the bed, finding even though he was in such a state, he felt much stronger than before. "I-its not fair, we were right there, WE WERE RIGHT FUCKING THERE!" The Uchiha roared no longer able to pretend to be strong, he let his emotions take over, slowly crying himself to sleep.

* * *

**Present Time.**

Naruto felt something prick at the back of his eyes, he slowly looked around finding himself back where Sakura had been before. "Are you happy? I remembered my words, I remembered the helpless feeling. Is this what you wanted?" Naruto roared, no longer caring if he went mute because of it, Sakura quickly appeared in a swirl of cherry blossoms.

Standing in front of the Uchiha with her arms crossed under her chest. "When you fused with Kurama, even though it was for such a sort amount of time, you felt invincible correct?" She didn't even bother looking up, he was going to be angry for quite some time, that was understandable.

"What I am trying to say is, if you keep focusing on your own strength, you will never become as strong as you were then, allowing Kurama and myself to help you is where you will gain your strength, stop trying to shoulder everything by yourself." Slowly she walked forward, putting her arms around Naruto.

"You hate me don't you?" Her question seemed so innocent, spoken by her soft voice.

Naruto slowly raised his right arm, letting it circle around Sakura holding her tight, causing the girl to flinch. "Hate is such a strong word, I am livid at having to go through that again, but not at you, it wouldn't be fair, instead my anger will be directed at a certain snake."

Her arms tightened around his injured body. Causing a small gasp of pain from the Uchiha. Her silver eyes looked up and fright. "Ah gomen Naruto." She squealed out, his look of pain slowly turned to smile.

"Gomen Sakura, Gomen Naruto. Should those be our phrases to one another?" His question caused her head to tilt to the side.

"What do you mean?"

"I apologise when I summon you, you apologise when you lend me power." Naruto stated simply, looking down at his partner.

"What makes you even think I can lend you my power? Plus why would I say sorry for helping you?" Her questions caused Naruto to smile wider.

"You said allowing yourself and Kurama to help me, is where I will gain strength. This makes me think that we too can enter a stage like Kurama. If we can, it will hurt like hell, much like Kurama's did, seeing it was an invasion of his demonic chakra, you said you were a demon sword, making me think you would carry the same, is this true?"

Sakura had the decency to look away sheepishly. "Even when you are drugged, your mind is sharper than you lead on. Yeah we can, and while it will hurt, I still think your phrase is silly, but I accept. Time for you to go back Naruto, it's almost time for you to wake up, also, I may have a solution to your arm later down the track." Sakura didn't give him a chance to respond before sending him out of her world.

* * *

Beeping, bright lights and sterile smell, he was in a hospital again. His eyes slowly drifting open, Mei was asleep on his sole remaining arm, he gently moved it without waking her, looking over his body for a few moments, moving to the side and turning off the machines, slowly pulling the plugs from his body. Now that he was awake he would be able to heal himself much faster than they could anyway.

He quickly made sure that his hospital gown was done up so he could move through the halls, finding the task rather difficult one-handed, but it was completed nevertheless. He slowly opened the doors and walked down the hall, leaning against the wall every now and again so as to not fall over, he found a few nurses talking to each other, making sure to let them know he was approaching. "Hey, I was wondering if I could get some food? I am a little hungry."

One of the nurses looked at him from the corner of her eyes. "Room and patinate name?"

"I don't know the Room number, but I'm Uchiha Naruto?" He rubbed the back of his head waiting for a response.

"I am not impressed with your joke, Uchiha-san helped us greatly, please do not diminish his efforts." Her statement caused Naruto to walk forward, looking down at her level, his burning red eyes meeting her brown ones that slowly widened in fear. "Gomen Uchiha-san, here let me help you back to your room."

"There is no need, I really just want something to eat, also how long have I been out?"

The nurses crowded around him, forcing him back into his room, much to his protest, he was informed that he had been asleep for nearly a week. A tray was rolled in quietly, Naruto quickly eating, doing his best not to disturb the still sleeping Mei. He didn't know how long she had been there for, so for now he would let her rest.

After a quick bite to eat and some Q and A from the nurses Naruto asked them to leave so he could get dressed, saying that while he appreciated their help, he has never been a fan of hospitals. They nodded in understanding leaving him to dress himself, Naruto found it was a task that was much harder than it should be, he looked around the room and gave a drawn out sigh.

Gently he woke Mei, her eyes widening in shock. "I know this may be a little sudden, but can you help me get dressed?"

Mei merely nodded her head, thinking it was just a dream, slowly standing and helping him take off the gown, his groin and upper legs were wrapped tight in bandages so she had no chance of seeing anything inappropriate, he moved his legs to make the task easier, her gentle hand slowly pulling his pants up, his hand moved down and tied them off, when Mei saw him only using one hand she sighed. "If this was a dream, you would still have both your arms."

Naruto took notice of the sad look on her face, he gently cupped her cheek and guided her to look at him. "Hey, don't look like that. Smile a little." His voice and words did little to cheer her up.

"If we had have been faster, or even if we had, I don't know but you should have ended up like this Naruto." Her eyes couldn't meet his, constantly drawn to where his other arm should be.

"I went up against a bijuu, we should be thankful that I am alive, _only_ losing an arm, well when the Sanbi reforms he will be angry, being taken down by a human, must be such an insult. Also Sakura says she might have a way around it, but for now I will be stuck with it. So stop being so gloomy, I hope you haven't spent all of your time in this room, after all your side just won the rebellion didn't it?" He saw her smile just a little, but for now that would be enough.

* * *

**A few months later.**

"Hokage-sama, a message from Kiri." The chunin left the scroll on the desk, leaving the room quickly. Minato slowly picked it up, tearing open the seal. He unrolled it, it was a declaration from the new Mizukage Mei Terumi, her side had won the civil war, she offered a pact of sorts between Kiri and Konoha, saying she would discuss the issue with him when they met for the chunin exams.

He panicked when he didn't receive any mention of Naruto in the scroll, it was then that he found a seal at the bottom, quickly he disabled it a small photo fell, Mei in her Mizukage robes standing next to Naruto in his Uchiha armour, both had proud smiles on their faces, he panicked noticing that the left arm of his armour was limp, flipping the photo over he found a small message.

_"Hey Tou-san, Kiri is a pretty fun place, as you can see the mission is complete, one piece of advice if you ever come here, beware of the turtles, they bit ya know?" _

Minato sighed, he got the message loud and clear, he wondered if he would be able to manage what Naruto had on his self-appointed mission. A small smile was on his face, looking at the photo again, he hadn't seen a smile like that from Naruto before, he seemed almost at peace.

Putting the photo down he sighed, the chunin exams were in a week, he wondered who Kiri would be bringing, nearly half a year had passed since Naruto left to Kiri, he figured this message was relatively old, the fact that his son wasn't back yet, proved only one thing, he would be escorting the Kiri team.

Looking down at the forms on his desk he smiled, the rookie genin teams would be entering the exams this year, he really wondered if they were ready for such a thing, but then again, it would be a good experience for them nevertheless. Team 7 he felt had a good chance to pass through, they had been training nonstop since their return from wave.

* * *

"This is the stuff you needed right Sakura?" Naruto questioned holding up a bundle of metal.

"Well I don't know I can't see, you put me inside this freaking coat!" His blade screamed causing a few people to look at him strangely.

"You said you were cold." Naruto deadpanned.

"Well now I am not, so take me out and let me see if you did the job right." Sakura bit back to the Uchiha, causing Mei to stifle a giggle, the genins and jounin with them were not sure whether to laugh or be scared at the fact that someone was arguing with a blade, much like the store owner. Mei walked forward and opened up Naruto's coat, showing his Uchiha armour underneath, it was a simple black ankle long coat, on the left hand side lay Sakura strapped in to a makeshift holder.

Mei slowly took the blade from the holder and lifted it up, resting it on her hands as it looked at the metal. "Thank you Mei, at least someone around here has manners. Also thats the right metal, I will need some time to charge, now put me back in the coat, its freaking freezing out here!"

"But you just-"

"I know what I said Naruto."

The Uchiha sighed in defeat, letting Mei place Sakura back into his coat, placing the metal on the counter and purchasing it from the store owner, who just looked happy that the group was leaving. Naruto and group almost managed to make it out of the town before a voice called his group.

"You came all this way and weren't even going to visit? What kind of student are you Naruto?" Musashi moved forward from the shadows, a frown on his face.

"Musashi-sensei." Naruto bowed to the man before him, feeling a small strike to the back of his head. A wooden training blade, he really shouldn't have been that surprised.

"What happened to your arm gaki?" The man questioned, poking his sword in the general direction.

"A turtle thought it would be a tasty treat?"

"What kind of idiot student are you?!" Roared the man, bringing his hand up to strike Naruto, Mei quickly got between the two, raising her hands to stop the samurai, her actions caused Naruto to frown deeply.

"He lost it fighting a bijuu!" Pleaded Mei, looking at him intently, a fire burning in her eyes.

"I heard him the first time girl, I am not deaf. Better question, why did you jump between us?" Musashi nodded towards Naruto, whose arm was inside his coat, gripping around Sakura's hilt. "Naruto was more than ready to defend himself, or are you implying that he is incapable of such an act because of his handicap?"

Mei looked torn to answer, she wanted to say yes, just because she didn't want to see the Uchiha get hurt anymore, but the flame in his eyes caused her to back down. "Good girl, that would have been a grave insult to the both of us." His words caused Mei's eyes to widened, slowly moving his coat Musashi showed his artificial limbs, his left side had been replaced by crude metals. "I too lost them facing the turtle, he is such a thorn. I lost two blades, an arm, a leg, plus my eyes. Do you understand how hard it is to see with just chakra girl?"

"Musashi-sensei, you are currently speaking to the Mizukage."

The Samurai shrugged his shoulders, his eyes looking at Naruto for a few moments. "You got away so lightly, it is safe to assume you killed it? Meaning it will reform in a few years?" A nod was the only response that the samurai got, he quickly turned on his heels and walked away. "Good, I wouldn't let you leave here alive if you didn't, now begone, I grow tired of dealing with you shinobi."

"Hai Musashi-sensei." Naruto replied, his hand leaving his coat and resting it gently on Mei's shoulders in an effort to stop any kind of retaliation. Once he was out of range Naruto spun Mei around to face her. "That man, was the one that taught me Kenjutsu, while you may be a Kage-level, you are not ready to fight him."

Mei looked at him for a moment, big teary eyes in place. "B-but Naruto-kun."

"No buts Mei."

It was at this point that Zabuza had a pen in hand, yes Momochi Zabuza had a genin team, this was the groups destination before the chunin exams, Mei had to speak to the Hokage for some reason so Ao and Kunkaru were in charge until she got back. Back to the pen and paper, there was a rumour going around Kiri that Naruto was immune to the feared teary eyes jutsu, Zabuza wanted to see if he could learn anything from this small encounter.

"In exchange for you not recklessly charging off to fight that man, I shall give you one, I repeat one of my elemental massages in the Uchiha hot springs." His red eyes met her green as they shifted from where Musashi left and Naruto.

"Two?"

"One..."

"Fine, you win Naruto-kun."

The Uchiha gave a small sigh while Zabuza grunted, compromise was hardly an effect way of getting out of the technique, but Naruto made it seem so simple. Mei now cuddled up against his chest as they walked, Zabuza kind of wanted to tell her she was meant to be setting an example as the Mizukage, but he just pictured what she would say. _"Zabuza, Shut up, or I'll kill you." _Her too sweat smile in place, before giving a small aloof giggle, Zabuza shivered, that image was the stuff of nightmares.

He gave her one last look, she looked happy where she was, yeah he would just leave her alone. "Naruto-san, how long will it take for us to get to Konoha?"Chojuro quickly put his head after asking the question, he had heard the tales of The Black Knight, meeting him in person was something completely different though, he just had this kind of aura about him.

"If Tai-Long feels up for it, we can be there right now." His words were answered as the tiger stepped out of a pool of black flames, carefully striding and stopping before Naruto.

"I guess I can, I haven't really done anything lately. Everyone crowd around, also touch my tail, you may lose a few fingers in the process."

"But its pwetty." All eyes turned to the blonde, she was around the age of Natsumi, her hair pulled back into pig tails reaching down to her shoulders, the girl was overly bright, her childish act was a front so people would underestimate her, a ploy that Naruto taught her quickly.

White baggy pants covered the lower half of her mesh armour, standard blue shinobi sandals for her footwear. Her top was covered by a yellow vest of sorts, a green scarf wrapped loosely around her neck. "Marashishi, please refrain from touching Tai-Long's tail, he is serious about his threat, if you were to lose a few fingers, you would form your seals slower, making our team less effective." A small glare was given to the speaker.

"Haku-chan you're no fun." The blonde cutely pouted but got into the circle nonetheless.

"They all seem ready Tai-Long, can you drop us at the Hokage Tower?" Naruto received a nod from the tiger, Naruto was about to move his hand away from Mei, only for her to hold it tighter, spinning around and pulling his hood up, already knowing what he was planning.

The group quickly felt the pull of chakra around them, trees, lakes and mountains flying past them faster than they could process. Naruto closed his eyes, traveling with them open this way always gave him a headache. Feeling the difference in air around him, Naruto let his eyes open, two of the genin on the ground, Marashishi and Chojuro not used to the method of travel, both Haku and Zabuza stumbled a little but quickly regained their balance.

Naruto looked around, they had just missing the Anbu patrol from the looks of things, with a small shrug he walked forward, the group following quickly behind him, with haste the group tore through the tower, quickly making it to his father's office, the secretary attempting to stop them from walking in, much like last time Naruto just walked right by, opening the door and storming in, walking right up to his father's desk and pointing his finger out at the man. "Bang, twice I have gotten you now."

With even missing a beat Minato looked up with a smile on his face. "It's good to see you again Naruto, how was your tr-" Minato only now noticed the person standing behind Naruto, a small smile present on her face. "Mizukage-dono, its a pleasure to meet you in again."

Mei gave a small step forward and a light blush, "The pleasure is mine Hokage-dono, after all, Naruto-kun here was a big help. But we just arrived, maybe we can do this at some other point. I believe my group is rather tired."

Minato gave a small nod, looking towards Naruto. "What compelled you to fight the Sanbi?"

The Uchiha gave a small shrug, tilting his head to the side, giving a foxy smirk. "Seemed like fun?"

Minato had to fight back the urge to chuckle at his son's antics. "It definitely seems like you are enjoying yourself more. I got your picture earlier today. But like Mizukage-dono said, lets save this for another time, you must all be tired."

"Not really, I am still trying to wrap my head around how fast we got here." Chojuro muttered out, much to the displeasure of Mei, giving the boy a small slap on the back of the head.

"I will take them to the Uchiha mansion, they can stay there for the duration of their trip. Also, is Neko currently in town?" he received a small nod from his father.

"If you head home, you should meet up with her, she is currently training Team 7 in your grounds."

Naruto shrugged his shoulder. "Well I certainly won't get much done here, plus I think we have distracted you enough for some time, oh before I forget, this is the genin team that will be taking the exams for Kiri." Naruto and Mei gave a smile seeing the look of horror as Minato took in their words, the duo looked back to see Chojuro had hidden behind Zabuza... again. Once they showed who the third member actually was, Minato was not as scared. He merely nodded and accepted their papers, tearing off the slip he needed and handing them back to the genin.

Naruto let out a small sigh, it had been so long since he had watched the chunin exams. The Kiri group followed him down the halls, through the streets of Konoha, a few Anbu patrols thought about intercepting the group, but seeing them travel alongside Naruto, they let it go, if the old Commander got into a fight, everyone would know.

Mei let out a low whistle as they stood at the gates to the mansion. "It's still as big and imposing as I remember it Naruto-kun."

"Mei-sama stop being so dirty." An 'innocent' blonde haired genin spoke, Mei turning on her heels and shutting her up instantly.

"That was nowhere near dirty girly."

"Who you calling girly, HAG."

"GAKI!"

"HAG!"

"Enough, both of you." Naruto drawled out, his hand waving in front of the gate and opening it. "Marashishi, you should show some respect to your Mizukage."

"Hai, Naruto-sensei." The blonde pouted cutely, while Mei grinned in triumph.

"Mei, you should not let yourself be baited so easily into an argument."

"Hai, Naruto-kun." The roles were now reversed from what they were a moment ago.

"And you Zabuza, need to stop taking notes on how I scold people, you will never be able to do it as well as I can." A small amount of KI leaked into his words, the swordsman sweating a little from the pressure. "Gotcha, but really, stop writing what I say down, I do not need people quoting me."

A small voice rounded the corner, Naruto felt like crawling into a hole after hearing what they were saying. "And then Naruto was like 'Sasuke, you need to train harder, I would not take you under my wing if I knew you would spit the dummy at the first sign of trouble.' He seemed like a real jerk th-" The small child looked at the group standing at the gates, "Who the hell are you? Better question how the hell did you get in?"

"Sasuke, if you are going to quote me, at least get it right."

"Yeah use a notepad like me!" Exclaimed Zabuza holding his pen and paper in the air for all to see.

"Yeah use a not- no Sasuke, do not listen to that man."

"Naruto-sensei?"

"Yep in the flesh, well mostly ." Naruto gave a small laugh at his own joke causing the Kiri group to frown. "They are with me, I was the one that let them in, any more questions?"

Sasuke shook his head from side to side, Naruto and the Kiri group slowly walking past them, Naruto's coat opening just enough to cause the small Uchiha to gasp at what he saw. Naruto paid him no mind, more focused on getting inside and relaxing, first thing was first, he moved to the bench and gently placed Sakura down. "About time, do you even know how much heat you generate Naruto?"

"Oh do tell Sakura-chan." The flirtatious voice coming from the auburn-haired woman beside Naruto.

"You know what, forget I said anything." With that the blade simply stopped talking, just content with sitting there, Naruto fished around inside his coat for a few more moments, pulling out a scroll and resting it on the table next to his partner.

He led the group through the halls, a few gasps were heard as they looked at the art on the walls. He quickly showed them to their rooms, like always those that were open were free, those that were closed were taken, Mei feeling more bold than last time took the room next to his, the Kiri nin trailing the corridor with their picks. "If you will excuse me, there is something I must tend to." A bolt of lightning struck where Naruto had been standing, the man had vanished, leaving the group aloe.

* * *

Yugao was standing on the small lake in the training grounds, her eyes looming over her surroundings, she could feel someone watching her, but no matter where she looked she couldn't spot the hidden observer. A large hand fell down onto her shoulder, causing her to freeze, unsure of what to do now that she was caught off guard. "Hey..." Tilting her head to the side, her cat mask coming into his view, he frowned slightly.

"I can leave if you wish Naruto-sama." She tried to move away from his hand, finding the task to be almost impossible, it was like a steel vice.

"I wouldn't be stopping you if that's what I wanted." His voice was soft, his grip on her shoulder eased up, not by much though.

"What do you want then?" She questioned, her eyes were studying his face.

"I want you to remove your mask, I want to see your face when I talk to you." She stiffened in place, was he asking her to break the rules?

"You remove it."

His hand slowly let go of her shoulder, tracing along the side of her face before his fingers slipped in under the mask, gently taking hold of it and prying it from her face, her hazel eyes widen as they were now able to be seen by Naruto's red. "I wanted to say I am sorry, I was angry, trying to find myself again. I shouldn't have taken it out on y-" He was cut off as she crashed into his chest. Her arms circling around and holding tight, a few seconds passed, she slowly backed up in fear, her movements became robotic and rigid, her hand holding his coat open, showing she was not imagining it.

"It's a parting gift, Sakura and myself will be fixing that soon." Replied almost on autopilot.

"But Sakura is just a genin?" Yugao questioned with a silly look on her face.

Naruto looked at her strangely for a few moments, before it clicked. "No my Sakura not the genin Sakura."

"Your sword can do things like that?"

"She said she could?"

"Sakura can talk?" The Anbu's eyes went wide with confusion, it was almost unthinkable.

"It is a really long story."

"I'm off duty, plus I can smell pocky on you." She poked him lightly in the chest, a small smile on her face.

"Well you caught me." Naruto gave a small smirk, attaching Yugao's mask to her belt, pulling a packet of pocky from his pocket, using his chakra strings to lift one into his mouth. Yugao found the action sad, even though he said he would be getting his arm back, the fact that he had already adapted to life without it showed it had been some time.

The two stood there on the water, just talking for hours, catching up, talking about how they had been training, or lack thereof in Naruto's case, his admission caused the Anbu to chuckle, not being able to picture Naruto not training for more than a week. He told her about his battle with the Sanbi, her jaw was wide the entire time.

"Wait, you blew up a bijuu, using a release no one has heard of before?" Her answer received a shy nod from Naruto. "You don't think that is cool why?"

"I never said it wasn't 'cool' just that is was a stupid move, I hadn't even perfected manipulating the chakra yet used a jutsu anyway, I honestly think I was just lucky it didn't blow up in my face." Naruto looked at the packet of pocky in his hands. "It's empty..." His head slowly turned to Yugao, one of her hands shifting behind her back.

A playful look on her face. "Whats the matter Naruto?"

"I'm out of pocky." He gave her a dejected look, holding up the empty packet, the purple haired Anbu took a stick in her hand, slowly moving it up to her mouth taking a big chunk out of it.

"I've only got a little left, you're going to have to get it though." putting the last little piece onto her tongue, retracting it into her mouth, a wide smile on her face.

Naruto moved forward faster than she could blink, the difference in height between them was staggering when they were this close. His right hand was firmly placed on her waist pulling her in closer, the only things separating their bodies was the clothes they wore, her head tilted up as his tilted down, she quickly poked her tongue out, showing the pocky was still in place.

Naruto's arm snaking around her lifting her up slightly, his breath tickling against her mouth, as quickly as the moment came it passed, Naruto was back where he was before a bundle of pocky in his hands. "Stop stealing my pocky." He pouted at her, both sharing a quick laugh afterwards.

It wasn't exactly what she wanted, but being able to talk to him like this again, at the moment that was all she could ever want.

* * *

**PA: Chapter 10 done, Project One, is over for those of you wondering when it would finish. The relationship between Naruto and Sakura I plan to have somewhat like Starkk's and Lilynette's from Bleach, as for her powers well I will leave that up for you guys to dwell over.**


	11. Chapter 11

**PA: Hey all, I am back again bringing you a new chapter, there is a little bit of action, little bit of fluff, but thats what we are all after right?**

**Mejciu: As of last chapter, Naruto was still down an arm, that changes soon.**

**slade963: Tai will be used in an upcoming event, he won't be fighting side by side with Naruto, but he will be fighting alongside someone.**

**Cerulean Knight: The jutsu well, he is going to get in some serious trouble about that later on, the rewrites are going to take some time, while this fic is getting most of my attention I am still doing little pieces here and there on them. Yeah the new fics are going to be separate, I may do one big joining one down the track, but for now, I will just expand little by little.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the title Naruto.**

* * *

Naruto slowly opened his eyes, the light shining brightly against them, a small groan escaped from his mouth as he sat up. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes. With a frown he looked over at his left hand side. He still felt pain every now and again from his missing arm, he heard it was phantom pain, something that was common, but it felt like something else.

He let out a small grunt as he hefted out of bed, making his way to the shower, resting his foot on the wall, summoning katon chakra through it to take his shower, with great difficulty, like every morning, he washed himself and his hair, quickly toweling himself down he walked downstairs, seeing Sakura where he had left her last night, with a small sigh he made his cup of coffee, sitting across from the blade. "Were you up all night?" He got a gentle hum back from the blade.

"Sakura?" He asked with hesitance.

"Yes I was up all night. Why?" Months had passed since they first started speaking to one another, he had gotten used to speaking to his blade, others were still trying to wrap their head around the fact.

"Maybe you should take a break, sleep for a little or something, I don't want you to keep pushing yourself so hard." A small frown on his face as he spoke.

Sakura hummed for a few more seconds before talking. "If I hadn't of been so stuck up, this may not of happened."

Naruto shook his head at her statement. "Or I could have been swallowed whole, what happened happened, we can not change that now. I don't want to see you push yourself so hard over this thing, take some rest."

"You giving me an order?"

"No, a suggestion, from a friend. I don't want to see you get all worked up over this, if I knew you would get like this, I wouldn't have bought the metal." Naruto spun on his feet, finishing his coffee and putting the cup in the sink.

"Naruto?" Her voice was soft and calm.

"Yeah Sakura? He stopped in the middle of his walk, his top sliding down a bit, his left shoulder no longer there to hold it up. He gave a small smile as he pulled it back up, inside he was livid.

"Did you mean it when you said 'from a friend'. Are we friends?" being a part of Naruto allowed her to feel the anger inside of him at the moment, when she voiced her question though, it calmed his burning fire.

"Of course, even though we have only just started speaking, we have known each other for so long, I couldn't see you as anything less. Even though we fight from time to time, but I hear that is what friends do." He gave her a small smile, slowly walking out of the house, stepping onto the road. His father would already be in his office, that would be his first destination.

He went through the normal procedure, for others anyway, waiting until the Hokage was free before he was allowed in, being ushered in by the secretary. The blonde haired man widened his eyes as he saw his son walk in like a normal person, even going as far as to give a small bow. "Hokage-sama, I humbly request we spar."

Minato took one look at his son, his hands crossing over one another. "No." Instantly he regretted it.

A small fire burned behind Naruto's golden eyes, he didn't even use the Sharingan in the meeting. "Father, please reconsider." Naruto walked forward resting his hand on Minato's desk looking at the blonde.

"I am sorry Naruto, I just don't have the time at the moment."

Naruto snorted and stood up, shaking his head off to the side. "Sometimes I wonder, would I have been better being eaten by that turtle, everyone has treated me differently since the incident. I thought you would have been able to look past it, but it seems you are the same as the others."

A firm hand landed on Naruto's shoulder, the Uchiha turned to look up and meet a mane a white hair. "I'll spar ya gaki."

"Thanks Jariya, which training grounds should we meet at?"

"7, it should bring back some memories ne?" His question was answered with a small smile, giving a nod he vanished in a bolt of lightning. Minato turning to look at his instructor from long ago.

"Is this really the smartest move?" Minato finished, a small sigh escaping his lips afterwards.

"Naruto isn't someone you can baby, his sense of honor is huge, he was the Anbu commander, plus I think he might still give me a decent shot, even missing an arm. He is creative you know." The white-haired sannin smirked, jumping from the open window, a silver-haired pervert closed his book with a clap, standing to his feet and peering into the window.

"Should I let everyone know Sensei?"

"I wouldn't expect any less, also, shouldn't you be training your team?" The blonde didn't even bother looking back, hearing the sound of a clone dispelling. "Figures."

* * *

Kurenai was face to face with the neko masked Anbu, having just opened the door to her apartment after hearing someone knocking, rather loudly mind you. "Me and Naruto are talking again. Oh also Naruto is back in town and I take back what I said about not getting between you two, now that I may have a chance, I'm taking it."

Kurenai crossed her arms over her chest, a small smile on her face. "Looks like we are rivals again then."

"So it would seem, one final thing, he is sparing against Jiraiya-sama, training ground 7, thought you might want to know." Yugao vanished showing she was only a shadow clone, a small tick mark appeared on the crimson eyed woman.

"Getting into a fight was more important than saying hello?" With a new goal in mind she stormed from her house, quickly making her way to where the fight would take place, a large crowd already around them, she slowly pushed her way through, finding herself becoming surrounded, only then did a robed purpled haired woman come formed and take her hand, a path clearing for her as she moved. "It's good to see you again Taka."

"Same to you Kure-chan. That baka, came back last night, already picking fights, here I have front row seats." Anko spoke, a small smile under her mask, she was now a full-fledged member of the Executors, on her back rested a long blade. It was the only weapon the snake mistress thought fit her, its serrated edge was actually joins that split apart, running the length of a long chain, allowing her to switch from close range to mid range at a moments notice.

"So Gaki, I hope you know I won't hold back on you." The sannin gave a wide smile, Naruto checking to make sure his armour was in place, tying off the loose end on the left hand side.

"I was hoping you wouldn't." Naruto now finished with his check, lowered his stance lowered his right hand to hover above his forward leg, it was an older style of taijutsu, but one that was based around lightning fast hand movements, complemented with strong leg strikes.

A few people were whispering, Anko gasped hearing what they were talking about, after being prodded by Kurenai the purplette gave her the answer. "People are saying Naruto lost his arm, that this fight is to prove to himself he is still fit to be a shinobi."

How right they were, Naruto was thinking exactly that. With a small growl he vanished, appearing next to the sannin his leg raised high into the air as he dropped down, Jiraiya brought his arms up to block, feeling the sharp sting form the impact, the earth buckling under the pressure, the fight had started.

Naruto used the sannin's arms to flip back into the air, vanishing again in a burst of speed, the only one able to see his movements was the sannin he was sparing, the others not used to a fight of such high calibre. The white-haired man jumped back already forming seals as the ground exploded where he had just been standing, courtesy of a lightning infused Uchiha fist.

The sannin brought his head back, letting a torrent of mud out **"Doton: Yomi Numa." **(Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld.) Smirking as he saw it land around Naruto, seemingly trapping the man in place, Naruto gave a smirk and jumped into the air spinning as rose, his right hand already finished its seals by the time he reached his apex. **"Katon: Nemutte Iru Sukeeru no Asasiki." **(Fire Release: Morning Breath of the Sleeping Scale.) Flames surrounding his form before falling in a cone, coating the swamp below him, turning it back to a solid mass.

_'Darn, I can't just trade jutsu for jutsu with him, his chakra reserves are well above my own.' _Cursed the sannin, watching the raven-haired man fall gracefully back to the ground, standing on top of the now dry swamp. Lightning returning to crackle around his body. _'It seems he can't use both his releases at the same time, I can use that to my advantage...hopefully.' _Running his thumb along the tip of his teeth he drew a thin line of blood. **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu"** Roared the older shinobi, slamming his hands onto the ground, Naruto quickly making some space between them. A large red toad came out of the smoke, he was maybe the size of two Naruto's standing on top of one another.

A weird staff in one hand and what looked like a plate in the other. "Gamaken, Naruto is much tougher than last time, be careful." Jariya called, he looked up to see Naruto brush the hair out of his eye, swapping them from gold to red.

"It's good to see you again Ken-kun, I hope the perv has been treating you well."

"Forgive me Naruto, I am ungraceful." The large toad replied, Naruto giving a small nod, the crowd at this point was speechless, seeing a legendary summon so close to them, they were incredibly thankful that the Executors put up a barrier between them and the fight, some of those jutsu looked dangerous.

"Normally I would bitch at you for using summons, but I am glad to see you are infact not holding back, so, I won't either **Kage bunshin no jutsu.**" The shadow clone, taking a stance next to the original, taking in large amounts of air, the real Naruto holding his long hand in the tiger seal. **"Katon: Mouretsu na Kaze." **( Fire Release: Blistering Wind.) Naruto let out a wispy trail of white-hot flame from his mouth, letting it form into the kanji for wind, his clone now releasing all that it was holding in.

At first everyone thought the jutsu failed, it was only when Jiraiya picked up on the grass wilting did he notice it was invisible, quicking going through seals and sighing. **"Kirigakure no Jutsu." **(Hidden Mist Technique.) A heavy mist coming in and cooling the air, now it just felt like he was fighting in a sorna instead, he wondered how hot the air had been earlier. Mei who was amongst the crowd narrowed her eyes at seeing her villages jutsu used so easily.

Zabuza smirked behind his bandages, already knowing what would happen next. Naruto let his eyes close, vanishing in the mist, appearing again next to Jiraiya. "You know, we can keep spamming jutsu all day, I am fine with that, but you might want to block this next one, the loyalists said it was a killer." Appearing back where he was earlier a proud smirk on his face. **"Raiton: Akarui Shinku Shoku No Danzu." **(Lightning Release: Luminous Crimson Dance.) Arcs of red lightning poured from Naruto's mouth into the air, seemingly vanishing, the Kiri group knew better, Zabuza had described to him in great deal the damage this combination move could do.

The movement was so sudden that the red toad only just made it in time to block with the large dinner plate, a deep crack running its length after holding up against the crimson explosion. Naruto let another four strikes hit the ground around him, showing the damage he could have caused, the message was clear 'next time when I say block, block.' The toad sage quickly canceled the mist jutsu, it amplified Naruto's raiton too much to be useful, he was thankful that the air was cool enough to fight in now, it seemed like the Uchiha's temperature jutsu had worn off.

"How about we swap to close ranged fighting, you clearly hold the advantage in longer distance combat." The sannin spoke, sending Gamaken back home, clapping his hands together and sending them out wide, taking on an almost sumo like stance, Naruto took his stance again, a grin on his face. Lightning arcing around his body, striking the air and ground alike, the sound coming from his jutsu was a loud screeching roar, almost threatening to rupture the ears of anyone listening. **"Raiton: Shougekitekina tsuin sukeeru no kobushi." **(Lightning Release: Fist of the Shocking Twin Scales.)

"This jutsu is the mastered form of my **Seiteki** I hope you enjoy, also should we make a bet?" Naruto smirked, watching the lightning lash violently at the ground, leaving deep lacerations.

The Sannin gulped watching the damage the jutsu was causing to the ground, it had such a strange name though. "What kind of bet?" Blowing some of his long hair away from his face, the toad sage lowered his stance, summoning doton chakra inside his body.

"I am working on a few projects that need your area of expertise, if I win, you lend me a hand?"

"Fine if I win, you have to convince Tsunade-hime to go on a date with me."

Naruto tilted his head from side to side, thinking it over for a few moments, he scanned the crowd and saw the blonde Senju glaring him down, he gave her a small smile. "Agreed!" He bit out a little too happy, the fury that went through her eyes was not missed, space was made between the raging medic and everyone around her.

"Who said you can make those kinds of deals NARUTO!?" The Senju roared, a hurt look coming over Naruto's face.

"Do you really hold so little faith in me?" He gave a small chuckle, lightning exploding from his back and launching him at the toad sage, said man narrowly parrying the strike to the side, only to see the large explosion from the end of Naruto's fist hit the ground. He frowned a little, his taijutsu was rusty, he knew that much, but he also made sure to note that Naruto was a kenjutsu focus, both of them are out of their elements right now.

Jiraiya looped his hand around Naruto's wrist, holding the boy tight, the lightning was not so bad here, his thin shroud of doton armour taking the brunt of the attack, sweeping out with his leg he took Naruto to the ground, tumbling after him and landing on top, straddling Naruto's chest, his fist coming down fast, Naruto dodged his head to the side at the last moment, before sending his fist right at the mans chest, because of his position Jiraiya was unable to move in time, feeling the full brunt of the lightning attack, only, he didn't feel anything, he heard the explosion and even saw the flash of lightning spew from his back.

It was then that the name came back to the Sannin, _'The Twin Scales, every action has an reaction, his jutsu is the same, wait I can't feel my chest, clever bastard.'_ Smirking the toad sage jumped off of the Uchiha, Naruto lurching his body up with an incredible show of core strength. "I think I figured it out."

Naruto chuckled and moved a strand of hair from his vision. "If you did then you know this fight is over."

The white-haired sage lowered his stance again. "There is too much on the line for me to give up, plus every jutsu has a weakness, I just have to find it."

Naruto took his again, his back foot turning a few degrees as he raised it up to the ball of his foot. "How much more punishment can that earth armour take though?" He moved forward leaving a trench in his wake, Jiraiya catching his hand and swinging the man into the air, Naruto flipping as he flew, his feet hitting the barrier, a small gulp escaped the sannin, having forgotten it was there. _'I was too focused on his jutsu.' _The man mused, getting ready as he saw the Uchiha bend his legs, flying at speeds that shouldn't be possible for a human.

Naruto was able to strike the perverts foot, hearing a small yelp of pain as the man flew away, shaking his right hand. "Clever, how long did it take to figure out how to get that to work?"

"Much longer than it should, also, try moving your hand now."

Doing as Naruto suggested he was able to get a twitch from his right hand, he let out a groan, thankful that his body would breath when it was needed regardless of his commands. Naruto quickly closed the gap between them, landing strike after strike on the sannin, in a desperate effort, the toad sage threw out a strong right palm, only to hit Naruto in the side of the head, a sinister smirk spreading over his face.

"I concede." Replied the white-haired man, not wanting to test what would happen if he lost control over his face. Letting the lightning die down, Naruto extended a hand towards the sannin, who gladly accepted it. "Even missing an arm you can still kick ass, its not that far-fetched to hear of you taking on the Sanbi." A wide smile on the perverts face.

"He will reform in a few years, hopefully I won't have to fight him again though, that was possibly the hardest fight of my life, one wrong move, it was all over." The crowd slowly dispersed as the two spoke, only a select few staying behind. A certain busty medic glaring daggers at the two.

"Naruto, care to explain that little wager?" Her tone sounded so sweet, the smile on her face almost misleading if it wasn't for the slight KI coming from her almost shaking form.

"I knew I would win, Jiraiya can't beat me in close quarters, not anymore at least."

"Hey you tricked me?!" The perverted sage pointed out, slightly angry at being outsmarted by the Uchiha.  
"Also what do you mean anymore?"

"The jutsu I use, only has one weakness." Naruto patted the sannin on the shoulder, giving him a small static shock, causing the white-haired man to stew for a few moments.

"No way..."

He received a nod from the Uchiha. "That is either the smartest or stupidest thing I have ever heard. How did you ever think of something like that?"

"Before I left to Kiri, I had a lot of free time." Naruto stretched out his body, feeling it all crack back into place. "That was very scrappy, I think we really need to practice our taijutsu Pervy-chan."

"Pervy-chan?" Tsunade mused, hiding a small giggle behind her hand.

"Hime, you really don't want to know."

"So Naruto, when were you planning on telling me you were back?" The group turned to see Kurenai standing there with an even face, the worry in her eyes was unable to be hidden though.

"Honestly I wanted to surprise you, I was thinking about just dropping into your training session once I was done here, but it seems that _someone_ decided to leak the fact that me and the Perv were sparing again."

A certain silver-haired jounin let out a joyful whistle from behind his book. "You say something Naruto-senpai?"

"Huh?" Naruto raised a hand to his ear.

"I said you say something Naruto?"

Naruto picked at his like something was in there, seeing the jounin looking at him he gave a sheepish look. "What, were you talking to me Kakashi?"

The group around them face flaunted while Kakashi hid under a cloud of shame muttering "Beaten at my own game." Over and over

"But I here someone passed her training, how does it feel Taka?"

"Sometimes, I picture killing you, slowly, over and over again for signing me up for this. But then I remember that because you signed me up for this, you had faith that I would pull through, in the end, I am good."

"Wow gaki, that was dark. I would offer you a spar, you know to test our skills, but my Executor weapon needs two hands, plus Sakura said that I am not allowed to use any kenjutsu before I am back to normal."

"I did not." Spoke up a pink-haired genin, earning a look of confusion from the Uchiha. "Sorry, not you Sakura, my Sakura, as in my sword." Naruto saw, gripping the side of his head in irritation, he really wasn't good with kids.

"Your sword can talk Onii-chan? Thats so cool."

"Hey, why you calling Naruto-sensei Onii-chan?"

"Cause he is my big brother, why you calling Onii-chan Sensei?"

"Cause he is my Sensei?" The two blondes looked at one another for a few moments, Naruto feeling like putting himself out of his misery, it was like dealing with two Natsumi's.

"So are you three entering the chunin exams?" Team 7 fearfully turned to face who spoke, the large man standing there with a blade on his back, the lower half of his face covered by bandages with his hand up in the air. "Yo, I am talking to you brats."

"Gah, what are you doing here no brows?" Natsumi's outburst caused a mixture of reactions, most started laughing outright, Mei hid hers behind her sleeve, showing some decency. Naruto slowly caressed his closed eyes, pretending to be in other world, while Zabuza seethed.

"I do to have eyebrows Gaki, they are just very thin and fine, unlike those caterpillars you have."

Naruto's eyes snapped open, slowly turning his head to look at Zabuza. "Do not insult my baby sister again."

"But she started it." The kiri jounin said in shock.

"Be the bigger man Zabuza and walk away." Naruto slowly shaking his head at the mans antics.

"You just called me a man Onii-chan." The little blonde replied

"Yes and I can, because I am your older brother, these are things I am meant to do." No one seemed to notice when a few people from the group all just walked away, leaving Zabuza his genin team with Naruto, Kurenai and Team 7. Naruto stayed for a few more moments.

"Hey where did everyone go?" Questioned Sasuke, feeling rather slow for not spotting it sooner.

Haku stepped up and spoke for everyone. "They left while Naruto's kage bunshin was playing around with you guys, also Naruto left with Jiraiya almost as soon as we all came over, if you had of been paying attention to your surroundings, you may have noticed this." Marashishi sent a look to Haku who just nodded. "I know you saw it Marashishi, its ok."

"Wait so where is Naruto-kun?" Kurenai asked looking around, only to find no trail of him, she looked down slightly and recoiled in shock finding a piece of paper stuck to her chest, telling her to meet him back at the Uchiha mansion. "Well I have to go, see ya." She said giving a wave before using a sunshin to leave the area.

"I am so not babysitting again, you all play nice and don't kill each other." Zabuza spoke, turning on his heels and turning into a puddle of water to go somewhere, anywhere that wasn't here.

The blonde from Kiri was about to open her mouth when Haku put her hand over it. "I swear, if you go all fangirl right now, I will freeze your lips shut."

Sasuke gave a small snort. "Its ok, I am used to it." He gave a small smile.

Marashishi looked at him for a few moments before laughing loudly. "Please Naruto-sama is the only man for me." The blonde giggled swaying from side to side, Haku's hand moving dangerously close. "Age is but a number, wait for me NARUT-"

Sadly, or thankfully depending on which side you were standing Haku made good with her threat.

* * *

Naruto walked into his home, quietly placing his hand on Sakura's hilt, feeling that she was asleep, a small smile spread over his face. Sadly it was not meant to last long as the doors flew open. "I let you run off for a few months and you go and lose your arm, what am I going to do with you Naruto?" The busty medic questioned, crossing her arms under her breasts, making them ripple just a tad, much to the delight of one Sannin.

"I don't know, like I said, Sakura said she would fix it, but for now I just wait, I told her to get some sleep, apparently she stayed up all night working on it." A few people looked at him confused at how he was speaking so casually about it.

Mei let out a small sigh, "You get used to it, believe me."

Kurenai extended a hand to the Mizukage politely. "I do not believe we have been introduced, I am Yuhi Kurenai, a close friend of Naruto's."

It was at this point that a white-haired male slowly drew a pad from his jacket, a strong grip stopped it from being brought up to his face. "Don't you dare Jiraiya." Tsunade hissed at the man causing him to gulp and nod nervously.

Mei slowly extended her hand meeting Kurenai's. "Terumi Mei, Godaime Mizukage and forever in Naruto-kun's debt."

Yugao moved forward placing her hand on top of the other two, thankfully in her civilian clothes. "Uzuki Yugao, Naruto's junior Anbu partner and close friend." The three shared a look that screamed one thing. 'Naruto is mine!'

Said Uchiha looked at the three confused, before looking around the room. "Am I missing something here?"

Kakashi and Jiraiya both palming their faces. "Kami you are dense at times?"

Anko walking down the stairs, drying her hair, lifting the towel enough to expose her nipples earning two man to go flying back, Naruto just waved a hand in greeting that was quickly given back. "Do I smell a cat fight brewing?" She quipped jumping down and landing without a sound. The action caused the two that had just been recovering to fall back and bang their heads again. Anko watched as all the blood that flew out of their noses just vanished.

"Has anyone ever questioned where that all goes?"

"Anko, did you ever here the saying curiosity killed the cat?" Naruto asked, raising a brow while he watched the three girls still glaring at one another.

"Doesn't exactly sound like the brightest of sayings Onii-chan."

Like that three heads snapped around to look at the topless girl next to Naruto. "Anko, don't you find it odd, sitting next to Naruto like that?" Questioned Kurenai, a heavy blush on her face. The Executor in question looked down at herself before shrugging.

"Not really, I mean, he has seen them before, its kind of just my thing, he ignores it as long as I don't try to hug him topless, honestly neither of us really see any harm from it." Anko spoke like it was just an everyday conversation to her.

"So we could all walk around like that in here and you wouldn't care?" Mei asked, fingering the edge of her top dangerously, two perverted heads nodding eagerly.

"I didn't say that, I just said its my thing, find your own thing." Pouted the snake mistress, Naruto flagged the toad sage to come over, brushing Anko's hair away from her neck feeling her stiffen at having her mark exposed.

"I have started to look at possibly removing this seal from her, I have many notes I just need for you to look over them, maybe see if there was anything I missed, or if there is anything you can add." Naruto started, his voice was serious, something that those in the room picked up on, Yugao was the only one to have heard him like this before. "Plus I also have another seal, one that will need to be worked on in private."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto for a few moments before nodding. "I will collect some notes I have and come back here, it shouldn't take us too long to come up with an answer."

Naruto gave a small nod to the sannin who nodded in return, the atmosphere changing drastically after that, Naruto moving to a small shelf running his fingers along it in certain patterns, the sound of it opening ringing through the air moments later, his lone hand shuffling through the documents and files he had in there, finally finding the one he was looking for he pulled it out, placing it in his mouth and locking the shelf again, looking around to see the sets of wide eyes at what he had just done. "Onii-chan, are those all over the house?" Anko asked tilting her head to the side.

"If you mean that locker, then yes. It is the safest way to store information." He replied normally having already taken the file from his mouth.

"Isn't that a little extreme?" Kurenai questioned, earning a quick shake of the head from all present.

"I was the Anbu Commander, there are files stored in this house that people would invade for."

Mei held her hands up defensively. "I can honestly say I have no intention of going up against Konoha, most of Kiri would be against invading Naruto's home anyway." She chipped giving a bright smile at the end.

"Why are you all so noisy." Growled out a voice from the counter.

"Sorry Sakura do you want me to seal you away so you can sleep?" Naruto slowly walked over to his blade, Yugao had heard a few times that it could speak, but actually hearing about it and seeing it happen were two different things.

"Yes baka, so noisy." She muttered out sleepily, Naruto nodded and used his chakra strings to lift her up and place her back into the seal on his right forearm.

"So... anyone still doubt that Sakura can talk?" Naruto looked around at the people in the room all of them shaking their heads with jaws wide, Mei just smiling brightly, having already gotten used to the fact. Naruto looked at the metal on the bench and sighed, it seemed Sakura had continued once he had left, from the looks of things, she must have only just gotten to sleep when they got back.

He could see that it was roughly the shape of what he was missing now, the fingers and all were there already, he looked at it for a few more seconds, the crowd slowly moving around and looking at the metal. "Whats that?" Questioned Anko.

Naruto pointed to his missing arm and smiled. "Sakura is making me a new arm, she wanted this metal to make it though, she said it has some special property that will be beneficial to me." Tsunade examined it for a moment the design was pretty good, looking at the end of the shoulder, she could see the nerves ready to be connected to Naruto's body.

"Hey Naruto, when that arm is ready to go, I can help attach it if you need." The blonde ruffled his hair causing him to sigh.

"Thanks Tsunade, I will talk to Sakura and see if she needs any help." Like that the conversation ended as Jiraiya entered with his notes, instantly stealing all of Naruto's attention away. The Uchiha strode over to a nearby table, quickly removing its contents and setting his notes down, the white-haired sage doing the same.

Both sat down, barely speaking a word to one another, swapping notes, adding and marking things away, the girls watching in awe, it was rare to see a seal master work on a project, even if Naruto wouldn't class himself as one, his skills were definitely up there with Jiraiya's. Watching the two of them was something on a level that they just couldn't process.

The toad hermit lifted up a piece of paper, a strange symbol drawn on it, Naruto looked at it with interests for a few seconds, holding up one of his own, Jiraiya reached forward taking the paper, laying it over to top of his own, a small frown on his face, twisting it a few degrees, putting a few pins in to and showing Naruto again.

"Would its process be altered?" Asked Naruto shifting through some of his files again, grimacing at the information.

"It would be safe for use." The hermit stated, waiting for Naruto to raise his head.

"Negative effects?" Questioned the Uchiha, his eyes meeting those of his godfather and mentor.

"Increased libido."

"Is that needed or something you added?" The question caused the hermit to frown, Naruto then got his answer, slowly he stood from the table and looked around, most of the girls had fallen asleep, only Anko and Tsunade were still awake.

Tsunade because she was used to watching Jiraiya work on a seal, Anko because this was a big deal for her. Naruto slowly cleared his throat. "It seems we have come to a solution, we can outright remove it, or we can just remove its controlling purpose, meaning the power would be free for you to use, the only issue is, your sexual drive would be increased." Naruto held up the design for Anko to look over.

The she could handle being a bit hornier, but the design intrigued her, the stupid seal that Orochimaru placed on her would be turned into a red rose, the stem wrapping around her shoulder and arm stopping just past her shoulder blade, the thorns would appear to show her how long she had left.

Anko gave a small nod walking forward and wrapping her arms around Naruto's chest. "Thank you Onii-chan, thank you." She spoke into his chest, Naruto put the paper down and raised his hand to grab the back of Anko's head, thankful that she had put a top on at some point while he was working. He lightly put his hand on the back of her head gently rubbing it.

"Its ok Anko." He spoke in a soothing voice, the pair slowly moving away from one another, the purplette wiping a tear away from her eye and nodding.

"When can we start working on it?"

"Tomorrow, for now though I will need to borrow Pervy-chan to look at a seal in private."

Naruto slowly moved up the stairs, the sage following behind him, both Anko and Tsunade looking around at the sleeping figures, sighs escaping their mouths.

* * *

"Oi, oi, oi Naruto, get up I have things to do!" Sakura roared from inside the Uchiha's head, forcing him awake, with a drawn out grown he quickly got ready for the day, putting his 'temperamental' blade down next to the metal like she wanted.

"How long do you think until you are done?" A gentle hum was his reply, the demonic blade already hard at work. Taking a small break from her work the metal changed a little more.

"If I work without distractions, I should be done by tonight, meaning we can attach it tomorrow. Also, about Tsunade helping us, I would advise against it, foreign chakra may become an issue while the arm is bonding."

Naruto gave a small nod, "Ok I will let her know, I will try to keep everyone out of your way. I will be working on Anko's seal for a fair amount of time anyway. Also about that..."

"No, you are not using that thing not until you spar with me in your hands again. I don't know what your fascination with that weapon is." The blade bit out, Naruto didn't even have to see her face to know he was receiving a glare from her right now.

"If I were to use you against her Executor weapon, we would probably tear it apart. So I was thinking of using a weapon of the same quality." Naruto raised his hand in defence. "I just think you are too powerful to use in a friendly spar."

A small silence spread between the two, Sakura breaking it without really worrying. "Are you hitting on me?"

"Gomen, I will just leave you to your work." Naruto waved pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"Thats not a no~" The blade chimed, causing Naruto's brow to twitch.

"Sakura, I was not hitting on you." He tried to speak calmly.

"What aren't I good enough for you?"

"Why are we even having this conversation?" Naruto questioned, completely ignoring what his pesky blade had asked.

"Because I'm bored?" Sakura stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Sakura?"

"Yeah Naruto?" The taunting tone had completely left her voice now.

"Thanks for this, it means a lot to me." The Uchiha gave her a small smile.

"Yeah yeah, now get out of my hair so I can get back to work."

"Talk to you later than." Naruto put his hand into the air, quickly running through some seals and placing a small tag near his blade, its kanji reading 'Silence.'

He let out a small groan as he opened the doors to his house, the light was incredibly bright, plus he didn't get much sleep last night, him and Jiraiya working into the early morning. He paced forward and picked up the morning paper, a photo of him and Jiraiya sparing was across the front page. _'Toad Fights Prince for the Princess'_ it read, Naruto having to hold back the small chuckle that threatened to break, the papers would write anything to sell.

With a small sigh he walked back inside, a delicate hand stopping him from closing the doors, purple fingernails stood out the most though. "Yugao, why don't you come in?" He questioned pushing the door back open, allowing the Anbu member in, a gentle smile on her face.

"Thank you Naruto-kun, I saw your picture in the paper this morning, you really can take a photo." She spoke softly walking past him, a gentle sway in her hips.

"I guess it must just be in my blood." He mused looking down at the picture, it was of him, upside down surrounded by flames, a wide smile on his face. A small stream of mud still flowing from the toad sages mouth. Behind the pair Tsunade stood, arms crossed under her bust. It was taken before the two placed the bet, meaning there was not a scowl on her face.

"If you read further in, there are some really strange rumours as to how you lost your arm." Taking the paper from his hand she smiled lightly, flipping through the pages, handing it back to him.

"I tore off my own arm for a challange?  
I sold it to the devil for more strength,  
My arm is being used for a ritual to summon a deity to earth? These people really have too much time on their hands." Naruto chuckled, these claims were ludicrous, Yugao seemed to find them incredibly entertaining though.

"My favourite one is that you chopped it off to gain the attention of someone special." Giving a light giggle as she finished, a small blush on her face.

"That is probably the stupidest thing I have heard of." He put the paper down on the bench, with a low growl.

"I think its kind of romantic, maybe that is something you need a bit of romance in your life." A small pout crossed her face as the Uchiha turned around. Making himself a cup of coffee. Yugao looked at the blade on the bench her hand inching forward, wondering what it would be like to hold her.

"I tried that once, it's not my kind of thing, you want a cup? Also don't touch Sakura she is busy at the moment." He didn't even turn around and he caught her out, the thought was funny.

"I would love one thanks, also, I heard you kissed Mei and Kurenai, I thought romance wasn't your thing?" She was glad that Naruto didn't turn around, the sad look on her face would have given away her feelings on the situation.

"It was more them kissing me, I just responded in kind." He stated putting their cups down on the bench.

Yugao moving around and standing next to him, "So,hypothetically, if say I was to make the first move, you would 'respond in kind'?" Her hand trailing up his civilian clothes, blank pants and a white top, it was simple, but comfortable, her hand resting against the side of his face, his eyes were impassive.

"Did you not notice, you were always the one to make the first move?" His question caused her to pause, it was always her that invited him to her chambers during their time in Anbu, always her that would push him against the bed before slowly grinding her body against his.

Gently she pushed him back against the bench, a playful smirk on her face. Her hands snaking around and grabbing onto the back of his hair, pulling him in close, Naruto's arm wrapping around her waist, picking her up and spinning them around, placing her firm cheeks against the top, her brown eyes meeting his red, lust was visible in her eyes, her legs spreading wide before tangling around his hips, she was not letting this escape her.

Leaning forward she pressed her lips against his, the small tingle of his high raiton affinity running through her lips, she pressed harder, tracing her lips long his entrance, pleading to let her in.

Naruto's arm moving and sitting below her ass, lifting her up a little higher before opening his mouth, feeling her tongue quickly dart inside, searching every inch of what she used to claim hers, her hands running through his long black mane, causing him to shiver in pleasure, it was the one thing she always had over him, ever since finding out he liked his hair being played with, she always made an effort to do just that, whenever they were like this anyway.

A low whistle came from the staircase, Yugao almost snapping her head around at impossible speeds to send a very heated glare to whoever disrupted her time with Naruto. "That was certainly someone I wasn't expecting to see this morning." Chimed Anko lazily walking down the steps in her robes and armour, mask around her waist.

"Its good to see you so early Anko." Yugao managed to say evenly, a forced smile on her face, her legs still wrapped around _her_ Uchiha.

"Its good to see you aswell Yugao, having fun on your perch?" Questioned the Hawk, smiling as the Cat blushed.

"You ready for the new seal today Gaki?" Naruto's voice broke the two away from their banter, both sets of eyes turning to look at him.

"Yeah I am just going to do a bit of light training, came down to grab a cup of coffee before heading out." Anko responded pointing to her blade and mask.

"I just heated up the pot, it should be good to go." He spoke with a smile on his face, glad his little sister was taking her new assignment seriously.

"It seems the pot wasn't the only thing that got heated in here." The Executor spoke with a small chuckle at the Anbu's reaction, said Anbu's legs slowly unwrapped, giving Naruto a quick peck before dropping down to the floor.

A small chuckling perked Naruto's ears, his head looking around for the source. "Oi Onii-chan you ok?"  
He gave his head a quick shake, was he hearing things again?

"It was nothing, if you will excuse me." He dipped his head and left the room, leaving two purple-haired women looking at him strangely.

* * *

His feet hit the soft grass beneath him, his eyes slowly opening, he always enjoyed coming into his mindscape. Picturing a large cave he vanished in a bolt of lightning appearing again in front of it, a pair of large red eyes looking down at him. **"Kit, the seal needs to be fixed."**

"Did it laugh earlier?" The look he got from Kurama was all he needed to know.

**"Now it is starting to affect you on the outside. This isn't something you can fight Naruto, you need to just lock it away, burn its key and spread its ashes to the sea." **The large foxed looked down with worry, his container was reasonable, letting him out every now and again, but mostly he was not a disgrace.

"I have acquired help in doing just that. Hopefully we will be able to rid of it for good." Naruto frowned hearing the creature rattle its cage. "Is it giving you much trouble?"

**"I burn it when it starts rambling, its screams are better than listening to it talk to itself." **A toothy grin was shown by the bijuu causing Naruto to laugh warmly.

"Would you like to walk around in the outside world?" Naruto held his hand in the ram seal, waiting for the response from his tenant.

**"It would be best if I stayed inside you for some time. Our friend may attempt something if I am not around." **The large fox groaned out, causing Naruto to nod in understanding.

"I thank you for your efforts Kurama."

* * *

The water beneath him was calm, letting him know he left the mindscape safely, Naruto slowly stood looking around for a few moments, a smirk tugging at his lips. "You are getting better Zabuza. But you were worried that I might sense you. That hesitance gave you away, don't think about stalking your prey, just do it." With a flick of his wrist he sent a kunai flying through the air, burring deep enough into the tree that Zabuza was hiding behind, that its tip nicked his shoulder.

The action caused a small gasp from the bandaged-nin. Zabuza carefully walked out and showed himself to Naruto, holding his hand up in a small wave. "Whadda doing out here?" Flicking his fingers as to motion to the small clearing around the lake.

"Talking to Kurama, I thought I would test how well my body reacts to acting on its own, seeing as how I am not soaking wet, I would say that it worked well." Naruto rolled his neck around, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a white stick, shoving it into the corner of his mouth and lighting it quickly.

"If Mei catches you doing that, she is going to kick your ass again." The swordsman nin smirked seeing a small twitch in Naruto's brow.

"I think it is more she will start riding me about quitting again, hardly ever do we scrap anymore, it seems that she becomes to embarassed when we do." Naruto stated calmly, the rustle of leaves nearby gaining his attention, a frown on her face as the person stepped out.

"Oh Mei, we were just talking about you." Zabuza's smirk widened before he vanished leaving the two alone. Her green eyes narrowed on the smoking shinobi.

"Its not good for you." Was all she said, moving closer and putting her arms around him, a deep frown on her face. "But I know you only do it when something is bothering you. Do you want to talk about it?" She questioned looking up at the thoughtful expression on his face.

"It is just something that has gotten a little more out of hand than I had expected. With proper management, it will become nothing." He ashed his cigarette, looking at it for a moment before tossing it away, wrapping his arm around Mei.

"Tonight, we are cuddling ok?"

Naruto looked down at her with his red eyes. "Tonight I may actually be getting my arm back."  
Her grip tightened and her head leaned against his chest.

"Really?"

"Yeah, Sakura said if no one distracts her she should be good to go tonight." Naruto moved his arm across to his left hand side. "Its pretty strange, thinking about how close I am to getting my arm back, feels like we have been apart for so long, I wonder what to do first, so many things I have had to pass up."

Mei looked up at him, a small smile on her face. "You still owe me a massage."

* * *

"Anko will you sit still." Deadpanned Naruto, ink brush hanging out of the side of his mouth as he made the right ink to use. "But it tickles Onii-chan." the Hawk masked Executor replied, a small pout on her face, arms crossed under her bust, the twins were currently tapped down as she sat on the stone floor in a pair of baggy pants.

Naruto shook his head. Having finished crafting the special ink he needed and placing it on a table next to him, Jiraiya placing the finishing touches on the stem and thorns. With the easy part out of the way the sage and the Uchiha gathered together, once they started they would only have a few minutes to finish redrawing the seal, they were confident they would be able to do it, but it meant they would be drawing both parts of the seal at once.

The two shared a glance, Naruto slowly taking the brush out of his mouth, the toad sage running through a few hand seals and placing his hand on Anko's forehead. "When you wake up, we will be done." Jiraiya spoke softly, she gave a small nod in response before slowly drifting off to sleep, a smile on her face.

Once her eyes had closed a frown came over the Uchiha's face. "We have to be both fast and accurate here. I will take the outer seal, that is the kind of seal I have spent a lot of time working on before."

"Great give me the harder part. Nah its cool, I understand what you mean, you spent a majority of your time working on distribution seals, while I focus on modification." Jiraiya spoke, giving a forced smile afterwards. The two gave a quick nod, quickly getting to work, both sealers using the same ink to remove any contamination.

Naruto had to take a few moments to breathe right at the end, his phantom pains had started again, breathing deeply he pushed through, finishing the final few details on the petals, watching the seal formula lock into place and spin shut.

The thorns glowing brightly for a few moments, slowly dimming down and settling, the seals were speaking fine, their ink had dried, now they just had to wait, Orochimaru's would soon rot away, then they were done. "Oi Gaki, didn't you have something else to do?"

Naruto shook his head in response to the older sage. "Sakura needed a couple more hours, I actually expected the sealing to take a little longer." The Uchiha took a few steps back leaning against the wall, looking down at Anko.

"She is going to be fine, you can even wake her if you want."

"I would rather wait until the snakes seal is gone before waking her, she hates that it was there for so long." Naruto replied, watching a small trail of ink fall down her back. The final stage had started, now it was time to let his chakra settle, whilst sealing was not the most chakra taxing shinobi art, it could definitely disturb it enough to put even well controlled users out of rhythm.

The last of the curse seal finally dripped away, their seal taking full control of the chakra and spinning wildly, the petals closing back onto the bud, slowly opening into a purple rose. In the end, they were able to make it look almost more like a tattoo than a seal, something Anko could easily pass away as a 'drunken souvenir'. He slowly walked forward and ruffled her hair, his chakra was even enough to wake her, doing just that her eyes fluttered open, looking at Naruto for a few moments, slowly taking in the large smile on his face. "Can you pass us a mirror Pervy-chan?" Naruto questioned, the sage doing just that, a giddy smile on his face, the expression of joy that flew over Anko's face made it all worth it.

She crashed into the Uchiha's chest clutching tightly as she wept, 'thank you' being spluttered over and over again. The two sat there for close to fifteen minutes, Naruto looking to his mentor for a few moments. "Can you take her to her room? She has fallen asleep.. Normally I would do it, but I happen to no longer be able to lift her with one arm, either I have gotten out of shape, or she has really started to build some muscle mass."

A perverted giggle left the white-haired sannin's mouth. "I sure can."

"You will than be leaving her there, fully dressed and coming back down won't you Pervy-Chan?" Naruto's cold voice got a stern nod, Anko lifted from his body a moment later and carried up the stairs. Naruto following closely behind, shrugging his top off and undoing his wrappings, this was going to be painful, he had no doubt about it. He dragged his feet up to the kitchen, a small sigh escaping his lips, Sakura had just finished his arm.

"You're finally done hey?" A tired voice chirped from the bench, Naruto felt a smirk tug at the side of his mouth.

"Yeah we finished up a while ago, had a talk and cuddled for a bit, you know, normal Anko things."

"How was she?"

Her questioned caused a wide smile to spread across his face, the happiness and relief he saw on Anko, it had really made all the effort he had put into studying the seal worth it. "Excited, happy, that seal had caused her a lot more issues than we know about, but now it looks like she just got drunk and got a tattoo, a very expensive one. How long have you been done for?"

There was a small hum from the pink and black blade. "A few minutes."

"This is going to hurt a lot, isn't it?"

"Is _the_ Uchiha Naruto nervous? The same man that was stupid enough to face the Sanbi, scared of reataching an arm?" Sakura jeered the raven-haired man, inside the mindscape she was grinning wildly.

"You didn't answer my question." He groaned out.

"Remember that time Snake told you to rub that musclegel you know where?"

Naruto visibly cringed at the thought.

"Glad to see you remember it, its probably going to be worse." The look of horror on his face made it all worth it. "That's if we were going to do it without painkillers and chakra numbing. Mei was more than nice enough to run down to the hospital and pick some of the high-grade stuff, Kurama is going to be numbing the area with his demonic chakra as well, your job is to stay awake and bond with your arm. I am going to be making sure all the nerves connect properly, as well as forcefully opening the ones Kurama closed off."

The large doors opened, Mei walked in with her standard sway of the hips, holding up a brown bag with a label on it. "I got the things you asked for. Spoke to Tsunade for a bit, now I'm here, I was speaking to Sakura for a bit, I want to be there when it happens, this is mostly my fault, so I decided I am going to support you through it, she has already said this is ok, plus I have made up my mind, please don't fight it." Mei moved forward and placed the bag on the bench. "Here you go Sakura."

"Ta, Naruto drink up and take the shot, afterwards, I am going to need you to open the wound again. Before you look at me like I am crazy, just listen to what I have to say. Once you have done that, seal me inside you and bring the new arm up to the wound, myself and Kurama will take care of the rest. Mei, just keep him awake, this will be painful even with all the drugs." Sakura explained, ignoring the look she got from Mei about what was going to happen, she had heard the sugar coated version, there was a bit of a difference.

The ex-commander did just as he was told, taking the painkillers, tearing open the wound, blood oozing down his side and splashing against the ground, he put his hand over Sakura watching as she vanished inside his body, he hovered his hand over the new arm for a little, slowly taking it and bringing it up to the socket he felt a sharp sting of demonic chakra leaving his body and taking hold of it.

Pain wrecked through his body as he collapsed to his knees. His vision was blurred, green, blue and red blurs were moving around franticly panicked cries rung through his ears, he felt something compress against his chest and hold him tight. Words were repeated, over and over he strained his hearing attempting to make them out. "Stay with me Naruto-kun, you can beat this." His eyes started to close, a sharp sting was felt across his face, his eyes snapping open and glaring. "Forgive me, but you have to stay awake. Stay awake Naruto-kun." Her voice compelled him to nod, it was weak but it was still there.

_"We're nearly done Naruto, just a couple more minutes, you can do this."_

The pain only got worse, his body entered an accelerated healing state thanks to Kurama, skin slowly wrapping around the metal arm, blending completely like it was always there, his vision slowly starting to come back to normal, the face of Mei was in front of him, tears running down the side of her face, her eyes were locked onto his, his red orbs slowly locking onto hers. "H-hey, how are you?" His voice was dry and raspy, he felt her hands slowly move from around his body to touch his face.

"Me? I'm fine, what about you?"

His eyes slowly took in the blood all over her body, a small frown crawling across his face. "It hurts, how long have we been going now?"

"Nearly half an hour, it's nearly over though, I thought you lost it for a bit there." She was terrified, that much was clear, it was riddled all throughout her voice.

His head dropped down a little, letting him see his chest. "You started clawing at it, like you were trying to escape. Hah, I may have tried to pin you tot he ground at that point, even when you don't know what you are doing, you are really strong."

"It feels like its been a lot longer." He groaned out, nearly falling forward, Mei held his body up.

"See let me help you, you don't always have to do everything by yourself." She bit down on her lip in an attempt to ease her nerves. Naruto flexed his arms finding he had some control over his newly attached one, it was beyond stiff though.

_"Just doing the finishing touches, try not to play around with it." _Sakura called from inside him. Naruto looked at the arm, watching his skin attach to the rest of his body.

His right arm twitching as his chakra spread through his body, acting as a protective cover. Something soft pressing against his lips, his eyes slowly taking on the visage of Mei.

THe pair broke apart, a cheeky smile on her face. "See, your almost done."

Naruto gave her a nod, a few minutes later all the pain vanished, Sakura and Kurama gave him the all clear, looking at his arm for a few moments he channeled a small amount of raiton chakra through it, watching as the bolts flew around, his mouth stretching wide.

"Seems I need to get used to this again, but right now, I just want to sleep." Groggily pulling himself up, he put an arm around Mei, the two walking through the dark halls.

* * *

**PA: Next time we get to see some pre-chunin exams training, Naruto getting used to his arm and more than likely another piece of fluff. Until next time take it easy.**


End file.
